State’s Boating Industry Shipshape
Buoyed by a strong economy, the recreational boating industry sailed to record heights in the last decade, with California boaters spending more than three times as much to hit the waterways in 1986 than they did in 1975, according to a state study released Thursday.
In 1986, California’s 5,035 boating businesses had total gross receipts of $2.6 billion, more than enough to keep the city of Los Angeles--with its $2.36-billion 1986 budget--running for an entire year.
Those same boating businesses employed 40,000 people and paid $476 million in wages, according to the state Department of Boating and Waterways, which published companion studies in 1977 and 1988 that investigated just how much money pleasure boating brings to the coffers of California business owners.
In 1975, California had only 2,754 boating businesses, which grossed $578 million and employed 15,000 workers. While the consumer price index rose 104% in that 11-year period, boating revenue rose 350%, outpacing inflation. The businesses include sales, manufacuturing and retail establishments.
Boating gives even more to the California economy when so-called “indirect” recreation costs are counted. Proving that a sailor can’t live on jibs alone, the study showed that boating enthusiasts spent about $4.1 billion on such expenses as groceries, gasoline and hotel rooms in 1986, up from $1.19 billion in 1975.
While the numbers are splashy, they should not be surprising, for California is home to more recreational boaters than any other state in the United States, and it is No. 2 in registered pleasure boats, behind Michigan.
“We’d be No. 1, if Michigan didn’t register its life jackets,” said William H. Ivers, director of the state boating and waterways department.
The study also gave new fuel to the ongoing rivalry between Northern California and the Southland.
“The South Coast region has significantly more than one-half of the manufacturing, boating publications and boat transportation businesses and significantly less than one-half of the state’s marinas,” the study said.
While Southern California has fewer marinas, those facilities are larger and home to more boats. Nearly half of the Golden State’s 711,193 registered boats are in Southern California. Of the 325,396 boats in the southern coastal region, Los Angeles County has 114,699. Orange County is second, with 60,231, and San Diego sails in third with 49,107.
In addition to underscoring California’s overwhelmingly healthy boating industry, the study helped sink the image that all seas are sailed in boats costing as much as a median-priced California home, said Spike Harvey, executive director of the Southern California Marine Assn.
“The bulk of the money spent on boating does not reach the marina,” Harvey said. “The average boat in California is 16 feet long and is sitting in the driveway. The owner has a family income of $30,000 to $35,000. That’s the brunt of the marketplace. The average boat costs $4,000.”
Spending on Rise
But marine finance experts contend that visions of the idle rich wasting weeks in white flannel aboard teak-decked sloops still have some validity. Such spenders, industry watchers say, were the ones who helped navigate the boating industry through the rapids of recent recessions.
“I was in marine financing through 1972 and subsequent recessions, and I’ve never seen it (an economic downturn) affect our portfolio,” said Rowan Henry, president and chairman of the board of Marina State Bank in Marina del Rey. “As far as yachts go, the money spent keeps going up. Heirs to estates and businesses are not affected by recessions.”
The study also served as a vehicle for boating businesses to show just important marine industries are to California communities.
“In the South Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, where 657 slips were allocated, we (waterways department) lent their redevelopment agency $12 million,” Ivers said. “The project has attracted $140 million to $150 million in shoreside development today. There’s going to be more when people see the value of marine development.”
U.S. Boating Participation
State Participants
1. California 6.47 million
2. Texas 4.45 million
3. New York 4.42 million
4. Michigan 3.80 million
5. Ohio 3.18 million
Source: National Marine Manufacturers Assn.
State Boat Registration
County Registrations
1. Los Angeles 114,699
2. Orange County 60,231
3. San Diego 49,107
4. Sacramento 39,077
5. Santa Clara 33,303
6. Contra Costa 33,168
7. Alameda 31,053
8. San Bernardino 28,217
9. Riverside 22,598
10. Ventura 19,396
Source: Dept. of Motor Vehicles
State Boating Business
Direct and indirect impact on
the California economy in 1986
Category Sales
1. Fish Processors $520.5 million
2. Boat Dealers 494.9 million
3. Marinas 273.3 million
4. Other Services 263.3 million
5. Boat Manufacturing 239.1 million
6. Boat Equipment 238.1 million
7. Boat Repair 163.0 million
8. Misc. Boat Supplies 100.0 million
9. Equipment Manufacturing 88.7 million
10. Publications 84.1 million
11. Surveyors & Consultants 37.8 million
12. Canvas and Boat Tops 30.5 million
13. Sailmaking 27.1 million
14. Clubs 17.1 million
15. Trailer Manufacturing 3.1 million
State Boaters’ Spending
Category Sales
1. Groceries $643.5 million
2. Auto Service 268.7 million
3. Restaurants 189.3 million
4. Boat Fuel 132.1 million
5. Hotels 88.4 million
6. Other Goods 57.6 million
7. Equipment Rental 42.7 million
8. Transport 14.1 million
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; Dornbusch & Co.
