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Tor,
I had intended to ask you about the marina in Green Cove Springs as a possible winter berth for Sarah this year. Then I saw this post on the SSCA Forum:
http://ssca.org/DiscBoard/viewtopic.php?t=7984&highlight=Where are you moving to? I've got a number of projects for this coming winter and am looking for a warm climate marina that allows Live-Aboards. I hope your projects are about complete and you will be back cruising soon, but any suggestions would be appreciated.
—
Regards,
John Stevenson
http://www.svsarah.comPost generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
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John,
Well, stories sure do get around. I’ll tell you what really happened here, but to first answer your concern about hauling Sarah, yes, Green Cove Springs Marina’s dry-dock and storage areas are continuing to function as they have for years. This is an excellent place to store a boat – very safe and relatively inexpensive. However, as big as this place is, still they tend fill up at times. So I suggest you call them at 904-284-1811 to see if they can take you. Speak only to Crystal and tell her you’re a friend of mine. No guarantee that’ll get you a spot if they’re chock-a-block full, but it won’t hurt. After more than 2 years here, I’m an official bubba.
Last Tuesday, the corporate owners of this property that includes Green Cove Springs Marina and some slick lawyer up in Virginia declared these ex-Navy piers condemned due to the prolonged deterioration of the steel pilings that support them. Everyone has known about the pilings for a long time. What was so unnecessarily nasty of these absentee jerks was their backdoor move to bypass normal tenant eviction laws, which require a minimum 30-day notice. Instead of giving everyone here that normal amount of time to make other living arrangements, they got some sad excuse for a judge to sign an order forcing everyone to leave these docks in 48 hours – 48 hours, for heaven’s sake! – or else they’d tow away any remaining vessels at the owner’s expense. Just plain nasty, and totally unnecessary. These are just low consciousness beings with too much money & power and precious little humanity.
A hundred liveaboard boaters suddenly went from 0 to 60, scrambling like crazy to cope, to tear down their dock boxes and work benches, pack up their boats, move their cars & vans and save their floating homes. Imagine the hardship this 2-day evacuation order put on some of the people here, especially those with regular day jobs ashore. One single mom who lives aboard a houseboat is a full time teacher. She could not take off from work to deal with this, her school being in the middle of exam week. The evening of the evacuation order, she was standing out on the pier crying, saying, “I can’t cope with this. What are we going to do? Everything we own is in that houseboat. Where can we go?” Her 8-year-old daughter just stared, wide-eyed.
Well, to cut this a little bit short, the deadline came and went and most boats remained, simply because to leave so quickly was for many simply impossible. And then, in the midst of it all, the marina’s aging travel life broke some bearing and has been unable to operate just when an awful lot of people needed to be hauled out, myself included. They’re still working on getting in a repair part as I write.
The local port authority seems to have taken over the hands-on changeover here and they are much more sympathetic to the marina’s and tenants’ plight than those pricks up north. They spent the last few days putting in 20 moorings just off the piers so boats that are not leaving at least have a place to go here, albeit without water or electricity. It seems likely they’ll leave us in peace here on the pier until the travel lift is repaired later this week and can get caught up with the waiting list of boats heading for dry-dock.
A local news video about the story is online at
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1329229943?bclid=1308023108&bctid=15007856001If you pay attention, you might catch a glimpse of my 424 in a momentary shot about 25 seconds into the report. Ah, famous at last!
Here’s the rub. I got to know the divers who inspected the underwater pilings of these piers this past year. We used to chat once in a while during the months they were here working. These two men, who as far as I know are the only ones to have actually seen the pier support structure with their own eyes – the steel pilings that are supposedly about to collapse – told me then in no uncertain terms that while there is substantial deterioration way out towards the end of the 1/3-mile long pier, the much longer section where I’m docked is in pretty good shape, nowhere near the breaking point. This is in sharp contrast to the owner’s contention that they had to bypass the 30-day eviction notice law due to “imminent danger.” That is simply not true. They just want things moved along on their timetable and to hell with all the people they’re uprooting virtually overnight. Big money, bad people. But you won’t hear that from these local news reporters.
This sad turn of events is hard on some folks here. As for me, after my initial shock and anger wore off I decided it’s going to be OK – even better than OK. I’ll just start cruising a month or more sooner than I had been planning, and that’s not a bad thing. I was already scheduled to have the boat hauled out here the first of April to put on fresh bottom paint and take care of a short list of other chores prior to setting sail. This event just moves my timing forward a few weeks, and probably means I’ll spend a little more time on the hard finishing up some jobs I had intended to do dockside. When the boat is re-launched sometime in April I’ll be officially and at long last cruising aboard the good ship Silver Heels!
They say the marina will eventually get the docks back, new and improved, and that this very special little community will rise again. I hope so. For me, this marks the end of one wonderfully rewarding chapter of my life and the beginning of the next. As is so often the case, when one door closes another opens. Life is good.
Tor
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Silver Heels, P-424 #17
http://www.SilverHeels.us
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Original Message
<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
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Thanks for the update, Tor.
I'm actually looking for an inn-water berth from much of my winter projects, so it looks like this marina will be in limbo for a number of months. Also sounds like the owners wanted to get rid of a bunch of live-aboards so they could free up the docks for what they expect would be higher rent users, Megayachts perhaps.
I'll monitor what's going on, but it does not sound encouraging.
John
On Mon, Mar 9, 2009 at 4:10 PM, Silver Heels < ([email][/email])> wrote:
Quote:John,Well, stories sure do get around. I'll tell you what really happened here, but to first answer your concern about hauling Sarah, yes, Green Cove Springs Marina's dry-dock and storage areas are continuing to function as they have for years. This is an excellent place to store a boat – very safe and relatively inexpensive. However, as big as this place is, still they tend fill up at times. So I suggest you call them at 904-284-1811 to see if they can take you. Speak only to Crystal and tell her you're a friend of mine. No guarantee that'll get you a spot if they're chock-a-block full, but it won't hurt. After more than 2 years here, I'm an official bubba.
Last Tuesday, the corporate owners of this property that includes Green Cove Springs Marina and some slick lawyer up in Virginia declared these ex-Navy piers condemned due to the prolonged deterioration of the steel pilings that support them. Everyone has known about the pilings for a long time. What was so unnecessarily nasty of these absentee jerks was their backdoor move to bypass normal tenant eviction laws, which require a minimum 30-day notice. Instead of giving everyone here that normal amount of time to make other living arrangements, they got some sad excuse for a judge to sign an order forcing everyone to leave these docks in 48 hours – 48 hours, for heaven's sake! – or else they'd tow away any remaining vessels at the owner's expense. Just plain nasty, and totally unnecessary. These are just low consciousness beings with too much money & power and precious little humanity.
A hundred liveaboard boaters suddenly went from 0 to 60, scrambling like crazy to cope, to tear down their dock boxes and work benches, pack up their boats, move their cars & vans and save their floating homes. Imagine the hardship this 2-day evacuation order put on some of the people here, especially those with regular day jobs ashore. One single mom who lives aboard a houseboat is a full time teacher. She could not take off from work to deal with this, her school being in the middle of exam week. The evening of the evacuation order, she was standing out on the pier crying, saying, “I can't cope with this. What are we going to do? Everything we own is in that houseboat. Where can we go?” Her 8-year-old daughter just stared, wide-eyed.
Well, to cut this a little bit short, the deadline came and went and most boats remained, simply because to leave so quickly was for many simply impossible. And then, in the midst of it all, the marina's aging travel life broke some bearing and has been unable to operate just when an awful lot of people needed to be hauled out, myself included. They're still working on getting in a repair part as I write.
The local port authority seems to have taken over the hands-on changeover here and they are much more sympathetic to the marina's and tenants' plight than those pricks up north. They spent the last few days putting in 20 moorings just off the piers so boats that are not leaving at least have a place to go here, albeit without water or electricity. It seems likely they'll leave us in peace here on the pier until the travel lift is repaired later this week and can get caught up with the waiting list of boats heading for dry-dock.
A local news video about the story is online at
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1329229943?bclid=1308023108&bctid=15007856001If you pay attention, you might catch a glimpse of my 424 in a momentary shot about 25 seconds into the report. Ah, famous at last!
Here's the rub. I got to know the divers who inspected the underwater pilings of these piers this past year. We used to chat once in a while during the months they were here working. These two men, who as far as I know are the only ones to have actually seen the pier support structure with their own eyes – the steel pilings that are supposedly about to collapse – told me then in no uncertain terms that while there is substantial deterioration way out towards the end of the 1/3-mile long pier, the much longer section where I'm docked is in pretty good shape, nowhere near the breaking point. This is in sharp contrast to the owner's contention that they had to bypass the 30-day eviction notice law due to “imminent danger.” That is simply not true. They just want things moved along on their timetable and to hell with all the people they're uprooting virtually overnight. Big money, bad people. But you won't hear that from these local news reporters.
This sad turn of events is hard on some folks here. As for me, after my initial shock and anger wore off I decided it's going to be OK – even better than OK. I'll just start cruising a month or more sooner than I had been planning, and that's not a bad thing. I was already scheduled to have the boat hauled out here the first of April to put on fresh bottom paint and take care of a short list of other chores prior to setting sail. This event just moves my timing forward a few weeks, and probably means I'll spend a little more time on the hard finishing up some jobs I had intended to do dockside. When the boat is re-launched sometime in April I'll be officially and at long last cruising aboard the good ship Silver Heels!
They say the marina will eventually get the docks back, new and improved, and that this very special little community will rise again. I hope so. For me, this marks the end of one wonderfully rewarding chapter of my life and the beginning of the next. As is so often the case, when one door closes another opens. Life is good.
Tor
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Silver Heels, P-424 #17
http://www.SilverHeels.us
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Original Message
<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
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John,
You’re right about the in-the-water marina being in limbo for a number or months. However, it is not the marina owners who instigated this fiasco. They’re on our side. It’s the corporate owner of the property from whom the marina owners lease. They are the culprits. Understand that no one is saying they shouldn’t repair the piers. They should. It’s just the way they booted everyone out virtually overnight that has caused such a ruckus.
It would not surprise me at all if the corporate owners are maneuvering to oust this entire laid-back boat yard so they can install another Florida mega-yacht money machine. But I am certain it is not the owner(s) of Green Cove Springs Marina who want that. If that is what’s happening, it’s the multi-millions-ain’t-enough landlord who is behind it.
Tor
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Silver Heels, P-424 #17
http://www.SilverHeels.us
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Quote:
Original Message
<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
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Bob,
I don’t much care about those dirtbag landlords or their disgusting mega-yachts. I’m only taking issue with the obnoxious way they maneuvered the legal system to evict a lot of good people with virtually no notice for no apparent reason.
Hell, you should’ve heard me last week when I was really mad.
Tor
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Silver Heels, P-424 #17
http://www.SilverHeels.us
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Quote:
Original Message
<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
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Joe,
It didn’t occur to me until later that the actor Jay Silverheels played the Lone Ranger’s sidekick, Tonto, in the old TV series. “Silver Heels” as I knew it was a sailboat name from a song written and recorded by Canadian folk singer Gordon Lightfoot a long time ago, one that I used to sing and have always liked. When I first came across this boat, something in the back of my mind said, “That’s Silver Heels.” All I did was make it so. The song is titled “Christian Island.” The verse goes like this:
Tall and strong she dips and reels
I call her Silver Heels
And she tells me how she feels
She’s a good old boat and she’ll stay afloat
Through the toughest gale and keep smilin’
But for one more day she would like to stay
In the lee of Christian Island…
Tor
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Silver Heels, P-424 #17
http://www.SilverHeels.us
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Original Message
<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
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Well thanks MR. Silver Heels-I’ve always wondered every time I’ve seen the name-which is quite often- : >
so my boat- Time in a Bottle– another name from romantic song verses by Jim Croce.Of course with a lot of other associations.
So “hi ho hi ho ! silver , away she goes- into the wild blue yonder- heeled over and a flying- away from ole Green Cove! Into the world beyond , final destiny unknown ,hi ho hi ho silver away– got a tune to go with that?<.. snip>
Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
Joe Shimkonis
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Tor, remind me to tell you a little story about corporate Marina Management companies, my 2-year long lawsuit should be wrapped up in May.
My sympathies to everyone who has had to deal with people like you describe, unfortunately we have the same corporations out west.
On 3/9/09 2:10 PM, Silver Heels wrote :
Quote:John,Well, stories sure do get around. I’ll tell you what really happened here, but to first answer your concern about hauling Sarah, yes, Green Cove Springs Marina’s dry-dock and storage areas are continuing to function as they have for years. This is an excellent place to store a boat – very safe and relatively inexpensive. However, as big as this place is, still they tend fill up at times. So I suggest you call them at 904-284-1811 to see if they can take you. Speak only to Crystal and tell her you’re a friend of mine. No guarantee that’ll get you a spot if they’re chock-a-block full, but it won’t hurt. After more than 2 years here, I’m an official bubba.
Last Tuesday, the corporate owners of this property that includes Green Cove Springs Marina and some slick lawyer up in Virginia declared these ex-Navy piers condemned due to the prolonged deterioration of the steel pilings that support them. Everyone has known about the pilings for a long time. What was so unnecessarily nasty of these absentee jerks was their backdoor move to bypass normal tenant eviction laws, which require a minimum 30-day notice. Instead of giving everyone here that normal amount of time to make other living arrangements, they got some sad excuse for a judge to sign an order forcing everyone to leave these docks in 48 hours – 48 hours, for heaven’s sake! – or else they’d tow away any remaining vessels at the owner’s expense. Just plain nasty, and totally unnecessary. These are just low consciousness beings with too much money & power and precious little humanity.
A hundred liveaboard boaters suddenly went from 0 to 60, scrambling like crazy to cope, to tear down their dock boxes and work benches, pack up their boats, move their cars & vans and save their floating homes. Imagine the hardship this 2-day evacuation order put on some of the people here, especially those with regular day jobs ashore. One single mom who lives aboard a houseboat is a full time teacher. She could not take off from work to deal with this, her school being in the middle of exam week. The evening of the evacuation order, she was standing out on the pier crying, saying, “I can’t cope with this. What are we going to do? Everything we own is in that houseboat. Where can we go?” Her 8-year-old daughter just stared, wide-eyed.
Well, to cut this a little bit short, the deadline came and went and most boats remained, simply because to leave so quickly was for many simply impossible. And then, in the midst of it all, the marina’s aging travel life broke some bearing and has been unable to operate just when an awful lot of people needed to be hauled out, myself included. They’re still working on getting in a repair part as I write.
The local port authority seems to have taken over the hands-on changeover here and they are much more sympathetic to the marina’s and tenants’ plight than those pricks up north. They spent the last few days putting in 20 moorings just off the piers so boats that are not leaving at least have a place to go here, albeit without water or electricity. It seems likely they’ll leave us in peace here on the pier until the travel lift is repaired later this week and can get caught up with the waiting list of boats heading for dry-dock.
A local news video about the story is online at
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1329229943?bclid=1308023108&bctid=15007856001 <http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1329229943?bclid=1308023108&bctid=15007856001>If you pay attention, you might catch a glimpse of my 424 in a momentary shot about 25 seconds into the report. Ah, famous at last!
Here’s the rub. I got to know the divers who inspected the underwater pilings of these piers this past year. We used to chat once in a while during the months they were here working. These two men, who as far as I know are the only ones to have actually seen the pier support structure with their own eyes – the steel pilings that are supposedly about to collapse – told me then in no uncertain terms that while there is substantial deterioration way out towards the end of the 1/3-mile long pier, the much longer section where I’m docked is in pretty good shape, nowhere near the breaking point. This is in sharp contrast to the owner’s contention that they had to bypass the 30-day eviction notice law due to “imminent danger.” That is simply not true. They just want things moved along on their timetable and to hell with all the people they’re uprooting virtually overnight. Big money, bad people. But you won’t hear that from these local news reporters.
This sad turn of events is hard on some folks here. As for me, after my initial shock and anger wore off I decided it’s going to be OK – even better than OK. I’ll just start cruising a month or more sooner than I had been planning, and that’s not a bad thing. I was already scheduled to have the boat hauled out here the first of April to put on fresh bottom paint and take care of a short list of other chores prior to setting sail. This event just moves my timing forward a few weeks, and probably means I’ll spend a little more time on the hard finishing up some jobs I had intended to do dockside. When the boat is re-launched sometime in April I’ll be officially and at long last cruising aboard the good ship Silver Heels!
They say the marina will eventually get the docks back, new and improved, and that this very special little community will rise again. I hope so. For me, this marks the end of one wonderfully rewarding chapter of my life and the beginning of the next. As is so often the case, when one door closes another opens. Life is good.
Tor
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Silver Heels, P-424 #17
http://www.SilverHeels.us
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Original Message
<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
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