The launch in January this year of the World Yacht Racing Forum has received an extraordinarily positive reaction from almost every sector of the Yacht Racing industry world-wide in a clear demonstration that Yacht Racing deserves its own forum to debate the issues affecting the business of the sport.

The Forum is modelled closely on the successful Motorsports Business Forum (www.motorsportbusinessforum.com), now in its fourth year, and the two events will co-locate and share the Grimaldi Forum facilities in Monaco in December.

The World Yacht Racing Forum is organised by the Informa Yacht Group,a part of Informa Plc (www.informa.com) who also own the Monaco Yacht Show.

www.marinebusiness.com

By Jason Claffey 

ELIOT, Maine — The State Fire Marshal’s Office could make an official determination as to what caused Saturday’s early morning fire at the Patten Yacht Yard on Monday, according to Eliot Fire Chief Jay Muzeroll said.

He said officials from the fire marshal’s office and independent insurance investigators will visit the yard sometime Monday to “weigh all the facts and make a determination,” Muzeroll said.

“There’s nothing right now that indicates it’s nothing other than an accident,” he said, adding that “nothing’s been ruled out.”

Muzeroll suspected the fire started against the shop’s back wall where the utilities run.

Disputing a previous news report that claimed the fire originated in the furnace, Muzeroll said: “I don’t even know if the furnace was turned on.”

Saturday’s fire at the yard, which is located at 857 Main St., next to the Piscataqua River, heavily damaged the yard’s boatbuilding shop, causing the midsection of the roof to collapse within a half-hour. A $150,000 boat that was housed inside the shop was charred beyond recognition, a fuel truck was heavily damaged, and the ends of a larger luxury boat and a boat mold that were both lined up outside the shop were singed. The fire is estimated to have caused over $1 million worth of damages.

www.fosters.com

The Marco Island City Council is scheduled to meet Monday, March 3, at 3:30 p.m. The agenda includes two public hearings for a proposal to build two large dock extensions at the Marco Island Yacht Club that would hold up to 40 boats. The Yacht Club proposal won’t be heard until 5:30 p.m. as the first portion of the meeting is set aside for presentations.As part of the presentation items, Public Works Director Rony Joel will talk about the recently completed Collier Boulevard renovations while Parks and Recreation Director Dana Souza will discuss his department’s master plan.www.zwire.com 

By GRACE AGOSTIN

Boat rentals, dinner cruises and charter fishing could come to the Manatee River as part of redevelopment plans for the Pink Palace.

A Miami-based group wants to make boating recreation available as part of luxury-hotel plans for the landmark at 301 10th St. W.

“This is just another venue of attraction for the hotel itself,” said Tom Cookingham, the city of Bradenton’s assistant director of planning and community development. “It’s another method of bringing people to the downtown area.”

The 140-room hotel proposal that will be considered by the Bradenton City Council on March 12 would require a docking facility to support a list of proposed boating amenities.

According to the proposal, that will require a boat dock for a 50- to 75-foot vessel, two slips for 17- to 24-foot rental boats, two slips for charter fishing boats and a floating dock for six jet skis.

City officials said an existing pier at Rossi Park could be an option.

The pier east of the railroad tracks has been closed for several years due to deterioration, but state money and a partnership with the hotel could change that.

Jeana Winterbottom, grants and assistance manager, said the city could apply for a grant from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission showing the pier’s restoration as a public-private project.

In October, the city sought $451,230 from the commission’s Boating Infrastructure Grant Program to expand the pier and add a floating dock.

However, the program wasn’t awarded any money for fiscal year 2007-08.

“Typically, we should have heard – it looks like they’re revising the program,” Winterbottom said.

She added that the commission’s Florida Boating Improvement Program gives higher consideration to public-private projects.

“That’s the one we’ll consider if we have a private partnership,” Winterbottom said.

Sheila DiCarlo, co-owner of Rivers Boaten & Stuff, on Manatee Avenue East, said she is concerned the hotel’s use of the dock would limit public access.

“There’s not too many areas on the south side of the river to fish,” DiCarlo said. “That was a nice area to go that you could fish off of because it’s close to the railroad, which is a good area to fish.”

Mayor Wayne Poston said if the pier is set up as a docking facility for the hotel, there would still be public access.

Cookingham added the planning commission would examine the hotel’s use to find a balance between the hotel and the public.

“I’m assuming we’ll look at the various types of activities, and we wouldn’t permit more than we could handle,” he said. “I think this is just creating another amenity for the downtown area.”

Plans to develop the Pink Palace into a luxury hotel were introduced in January by Darrell Reha, owner of the landmark, and Manatee County Commissioner Joe McClash, a potential purchaser of the property.

Reha said a Miami-based group is interested in developing the building into a hotel of Ritz-Carlton caliber while preserving its Mediterranean look.

Reha said the hotel developer won’t be named until the the city gives approval.

Condominiums were previously planned for the Pink Palace, however, Reha said that was scrapped when condo sales came to a halt last year.

Mike Kennedy, executive director of the Downtown Development Authority, said a luxury hotel with boating recreation could encourage more people to visit downtown.

“It gives people a reason and a means to visit the shops and restaurants,” Kennedy said. “Any way we can encourage the boating community to visit downtown is a plus.”

www.bradenton.com

The Country Fire Authority (CFA) says people should keep track of their electrical items, after an electrical fault sparked a fire that destroyed the Bendigo Yacht Club boat shed.

The shed, at Lake Eppalock, south-east of Bendigo, burnt down on Wednesday.

Fire investigators say a battery charger inside the shed sparked the blaze.

The damage is estimated to be about $150,000.

The CFA’s Mark Gilmore says anything with power has the potential to catch fire.

“I think particularly if something is in a position where it’s not supervised,” he said.

“You can imagine if you had a phone charger in your house and it’s playing up and it’s getting hot and it smells a bit then you’re probably going to do something about it.

“But if you’ve got something that you don’t see everyday then that’s probably something that’s at risk.”

www.abc.net

Investigators say a big fire in a shed at the Bendigo Yacht Club at Lake Eppalock yesterday was not suspicious, but they are still trying to find the cause.

Boats and tractors were also destroyed and the fire left an estimated damage bill of about $150,000.

Mark Gilmore from the Country Fire Authority says fuel was stored in a shed next to where the fire occurred.

“One of the early actions of the brigade was to protect that exposure and that was done successfully, so we didn’t thankfully have any fuel problems getting involved with the fire,” he said.

“The fire was just the large shed.”

www.abc.net

Dubai Real Estate News 

Emaar Hospitality Group, the arm of leading real estate developer Emaar will open its second marina within the Dubai Marina in mid-2008, along with a clubhouse built for the Dubai Marina Yacht Club. 

The yacht club will be able to berth 116 vessels and has the largest dock among the four marinas due for completion, including Marina Mall and West Marina, within the waterfront project. Already 220 berths are available at East Marina. Once the four projects are up and running, Dubai Marina will eventually offer 600 berths. “Dubai Marina is a demonstration of innovative adaptation to modern lifestyles, and offers a unique experience to the UAE by delivering a full spectrum of water-based activities such as yachting, sailing and invigorating water sports,” said Marc Dardenne, CEO of Emaar Hospitality Group. “The addition to Dubai Marina Yacht Club complements the needs of Dubai’s bustling boating community by showcasing several lifestyle amenities.”

The new clubhouse has been designed by international consultants to create a warm feeling, according to Emaar, and will include a lot of wooden features. It offers access to international yacht sale and brokers offices, a charter office and a boating school.

By Robert Salonga

BETHEL ISLAND — A two-alarm fire broke out at a yacht and boat dealership early this morning that took over two hours for firefighters to extinguish, the East Contra Costa County Fire District said.

Firefighters were called to the Marine Emporium in the 5900 block of Bethel Island Road around 1:50 a.m., the fire district said. When they arrived, the squad of 28 personnel saw flames smoke and flames coming from the roof and attic of the three-story building.

The fire was contained to the third floor of the building, which contained a facility that performed vinyl work on boats, the fire district said. Smoke and water damage was present throughout the first two floors.

Firefighters brought the fire under control at 4:10 a.m. Access to water was a factor in the lengthy time it took to fight the fire, a fire dispatcher said.

No injuries were reported. The fire district estimates that $750,000 in structure and material damage was caused by the blaze. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

According to its Web site, the Marine Emporium has been at its current location since 1968. In addition to sales, the business also carries yacht parts and performs maintenance and repairs.

By MARK HOLAN, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 27, 2008

DAVIS ISLANDS – The sailors at Davis Island Yacht Club today are hoisting a new flag on their yardarm.

The flag features a white pelican against blue and green waves and boasts the words “Clean Marina.” The honor is being bestowed at noon by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

The state’s Clean Marina program encourages marinas to prevent pollution through hurricane preparedness, safe fueling, waste storage and spill recovery.

“It really means a lot,” said Antolin Rivera, the club’s rear admiral. “It shows we continue to be a good neighbor.”

About 110 boats are docked at the club, and about 50 others are kept on trailers. Most are sailboats, which use diesel engines to power past the breakwater.

The club does not have fuel pumps.

The Clean Marina designation requires annual written confirmation that the facility meets state standards; state representatives can request an inspection to reaffirm the status.

The city has applied for the Clean Marina designation for its 61-slip Marjorie Park Yacht Basin on Davis Islands, marina coordinator Richard Achey said.

Davis Island Yacht Club has 500 members and offers a youth sailing program for about 250 students every summer.

“If we can instill it’s good to be good stewards of the environment – to leave a clean wake – then they will grow up to be responsible members of the community,” Rivera said.

Reporter Mark Holan can be reached at (813) 835-2102 or mholan@tampatrib.com.