Harbor improvements aim to attract out-of-town boaters

ALPENA -- The harbor in Alpena enjoyed a solid year as boats filled about 98% of the slips, but many transient boaters continue to bypass Alpena and the nine-mile trip into Thunder Bay to dock at marinas not as far off the beaten path.

Alpena Harbormaster Shannon Smolinski said that, despite out-of-town boaters choosing to take their boats to Rogers City, Harrisville, and Presque Isle, word about improvements at the harbor and the nearby downtown has spread and she expects more boaters to choose Alpena in the coming years.

"Transient traffic wasn't up, but that was expected with fuel prices," Smolinski said. "But the transient that did come in loved Alpena. We had some transient traffic that hadn't been here in a couple years that came back and they specifically found me and told me how happy they were with the improvements we made."

Smolinski said among the new amenities at the harbor are Wi-Fi, improved docks, and a reworked boating lounge. She said people who travel long distances in their boats find quality internet appealing because it allows them to work remotely, which many people do now.

"A lot of people who came in stayed an extra day or two because the Wi-Fi was strong enough for them to work," she said.

The transient guests in Alpena also tend to spend well while in Alpena, Smolinski said. She said that not only benefits the harbor and marina but also the small businesses nearby.

"You don't go touring up and down the coastline if you're not spending money," she said. "These people go downtown and eat and shop and put in $150 to $200 of fuel at $5 a gallon in their boats every two days. It boosts the economy and people really like the diversity of the restaurants and shops we have so close by."

Smolinski said the city has a running list of suggestions, concerns, and requests from boaters that it utilizes to make improvements. She said the city will begin trying to acquire grant funding to have a new restroom facility exclusively for boaters constructed at the harbor and to improve the bathhouse and shower area.

The city has already received a $150,000 grant for new fixed, floating docks to replace old ones that have outlived their useful life. She said the city has committed $151,000 as a match.

"Hopefully, you'll start seeing the docks coming out late this fall and winter, then I will bid the new docks, so, hopefully, they will come in in the spring," Smolinski said. "Hopefully, next spring, when everybody gets here, we will have new docks."

A new public restroom facility will be built nearby at Bay View Park, with construction on the new facility slated to begin in 2023.

Smolinski said that, even though there has been a lot of progress made at the harbor, there is still more work to do. She said the city will continue to pursue more grant funding to help cross projects off the list and the city is going to put an emphasis on promoting the harbor to help lure in more boats from out of the area.

"We have the pieces in place, but we need to find a way to overcome that nine miles, which means we have to make Alpena a destination," Smolinski said. "We need to make sure people know about us and what we have to offer. People in the boating community talk with each other, and, if they are hearing Alpena is where you need to go and want to be, they will begin to make that nine-mile trip in here to see us."

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.