South Bay : Sea-Goers Seek to Keep Berth 117 Alive

One by one, more than 20 boat owners, fishermen and residents from San Pedro trickled into the Board of Harbor Commissioners meeting Wednesday morning and asked them to save Berth 117.

The sea-goers spoke out against the Harbor Department’s recent decision to close the berth, the only marina in Los Angeles Harbor where boat owners can repair vessels without paying a shipyard fee, which runs about $45 per hour.

“The people who use this marina are working-class people, barely making an income,” said Herb Widoeft, a San Pedro boat owner. “These boats that we restore are our dreams. If you close it, where do we go?”

Michael Lemke, Port of Los Angeles director of property management, said the marina is being shut down because of numerous electrical code and safety violations. In addition, Lemke said the marina’s leaseholder, Hamilton Pacific Corp., has failed to pay four months’ rent.

But Mike Vaughn, the attorney representing Hamilton Pacific and more than 60 tenants of the marina, said that after the decision was reached to close the marina, the Harbor Department refused all rent payments. Vaughn contends that the Harbor Department wants to get rid of all small operators in the harbor.

“A few of the people docked at this marina live on their boats and will be homeless if it closes,” Vaughn said. “It really is the department’s responsibility to keep this place open.”

At the meeting, board Commissioner Lee Anderson was appointed to review the situation and report back at the next meeting.

“When boats are torn by weather, they either need to be destroyed or restored,” said Gunner Overall, who has managed Berth 117 for four years. “Without this marina, as boats get old, they will have no choice but to die.”