Marina del Rey : Boat Slip Vacancy Rate Rises

The vacancy rate for boat slips in Marina del Rey jumped to 5.3% at the beginning of this year--matching the highest rate ever recorded in the world’s largest man-made small-craft harbor.

County officials who oversee operations at the marina expressed concern Wednesday about the mounting vacancy rate. The figure is now the highest since February, 1988, when the October, 1987, stock market crash affected some boaters.

Chris Klinger, deputy director of the county Department of Beaches and Harbors, told members of the county’s Small Craft Harbor Commission that he was not sure of the cause of the high vacancy rate, but speculated that it is “probably reflective of the overall economy.”

A survey found that 275 boat slips in the marina were vacant Jan. 1 out of a total of 5,285 slips. The vacancy rate was highest in slips used by smaller, less expensive boats.

All the slips are controlled by private operators who hold long-term leases with the county and rent individual slips to boat owners.

Commissioner Louis Rogers expressed concern that the vacancy rate was “approaching what I think is a danger zone.” He urged county officials to work with marina lessees to encourage boaters to rent slips in the marina.

But Bob Leslie, representing the Marina Lessees Assn., said the figures were distorted by the loss of boat slips at two anchorages undergoing repairs and renovation. When those slips are subtracted, county officials estimate that the overall vacancy rate drops to about 4.7%.

County officials also reported that rental rates at the marina are 7.5% higher than the average charged at marinas from Ventura to Newport Beach, an increase from a 5.7% gap a year ago. The survey does not include marinas where rental rates are subject to price controls.

Commissioner Herbert Strickstein said there is “no question” that higher rental rates for boat slips are discouraging middle-income and first-time boat owners from using Marina del Rey. “We are allowing the highest price a lessee can get for a slip,” he said.