In the middle of summer, when Council is taking a break, Cobourg resident Ted Williams sent a letter to Council asking about the transient slip policy at the Cobourg Marina. Ted believes that currently 50 slips are reserved for visitors (transients) and that some residents are unable to get a slip because of this. The marina map shows a total of 216 slips so 50 is 23% of the total. Reserving slips for transients indicates that the Town is encouraging visitors and raises the question of what is the harbour for. Is it for residents or is it a tourist attraction? And in either case, do we care enough about it to spend around $20M to fix it? Before Covid, there were plans to enhance the East pier for $4m and fix the harbour walls for around $15m but since then the cost has risen to more than $20m just to fix the breakwaters and walls.
The recent Asset management plan includes the cost to fix the harbour and no doubt staff will be asking for this in the 2025 budget. It seems that the project to enhance the east pier has died.
But the question that has not been asked and certainly not answered: do Cobourg residents want to encourage Tourists and if so, what is the benefit? Parking is now so expensive that the Highland games have moved to Port Hope – what’s next?
Note that repeated attempts failed to get Brian Geerts to comment on these issues. If he responds after this post is published, his response will be an addendum.
But let’s look at Ted’s letter:
Summary of letter
Download full letter from Resources
- Tourists don’t use Cobourg’s winter storage so that is lost revenue estimated at $17,000 annually
- The constant turnover of transient rentals requires additional staff
- Cobourg residents who are denied slips are taking their boats and spending power to other communities. For example, one Cobourg CS 36 sailboat owner confirmed significant weekend spending in Belleville due to lack of a local slip.
- Transient slips are often vacant during weekdays, whereas local boaters would use their slips more consistently throughout the week.
- The focus on gains of tourism revenue often overlooks the potential losses in local economic activity and marina efficiency. I believe a more balanced approach would better serve both the marina’s financial interests and the needs of Cobourg residents.
But the Marina is just one of Cobourg’s Tourist attractions. The beach, the trailer park and Victoria Hall with its concerts are others. It’s true that Tourists bring revenue to the Town – but has there been a study to determine if the cost outweighs the benefits? And do the Downtown businesses rely on Tourists or do they survive on business from residents?
Resources
- Letter from Ted Williams – listed as “correspondence” on escribe on 2 August 2024
Cobourg News Blog articles
- Harbour Repairs Cost problem – 21 September 2022
- Asset Management Plan – 26 June 2024
- Download Consultant report on East Pier Revitalization – 7 March 2022
Information on Marina
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I’d like to see some sort of ferry service to Rochester that allowed cars. It would prilovide a more direct route South for some snowbirds and for US citizens who want to visit our beautiful Country. They’d sure appreciate a nice meal or stayover in Cobourg first!
I think Ted raises an important question. As far as the marina is concerned, there should be consultation and debate with:
. Marina management over management practice, communications and revenue model
. All boaters. The recreational fishermen have increased significantly, and their customers bring revenue to the Town
. CYC. They represent a declining number of total boaters, but provide important programs, like learn to sail, for local kids.
. CYC for the grossly underused facility’s they occupy on prime waterfront real estate
About a month ago I was walking in the morning with a friend along the waterfront when 2 people came off of their boat to where we were walking. The man had a huge smile on his face and asked if we were from Cobourg? He said this place is beautiful and told us they were from Rochester. I think we should welcome those travelling on their boats to stop and stay awhile. I’m sure they would do some shopping and dinning in Cobourg during their stay. I think we should encourage visitors to our beautiful town. I really don’t think locals who park their boats at the marina would likely bring in as much money to the area as visitors do. Do they shop and dine? As for parking, I think we need a multilevel parking garage built. I believe the parking lot on McGill across from Victoria park was to be developed into town houses with underground parking. This was to have happen years ago. Perhaps that space could be developed into a multilevel parking garage. It would be a great local and generate income for the town.
I believe you are dead-on with your comments about visiting boaters. Local boaters go home for dinner, visitors go to our restaurants.
Frenchy,
Have you got a study that supports your assertion?
My experience as a boater, it that transient boaters, for the most part, bring their own food/booze. Some order take-out or go to the local (walking distance) restaurants/bars.
The popular myth of boaters being walking bags of tourist money is just that: a myth. Boating is expensive (interest, fuel, maintenance, marina fees, supplies). Restaurant meals and bar hopping are near the bottom of the budget priority list
And you could offer a bus tour of Cobourg, starting with the encampment.
“He said this place is beautiful…”.
So we should put up a big, ugly parking garage in a conspicuous place downtown?
There goes “beautiful”.
Marilyn,
The parking lot at McGill & Queen, opposite the post office, is “conditionally” owned by the developer who also owns the “white elephant” property (auto electric) to the west. The sales agreement with the Town provides for about 60 public parking spaces to be provided. Recently, the Town granted the developer an extension to July 2025 to get the project under way.
As with Covert St, a dedicated parking garage is not financially viable. If it was, one would have already been built.
Transient boaters do spend “some” money in town. How much is hard to estimate. The Town benefits from the slip fees, fuel and sundry sales. It is not the town’s mandate to shill for local business. Let those that benefit help pay for the costs.
Short answer is YES. When more visitors arrive and experience the amenities and resources in Cobourg, and hopefully gain a favorable impression, this should encourage future migration to this town when retirement is near.
Cobourg has done little to encourage tourist with the exorbitant parking fees. As resident with mobility issues it has done much to make parking in the surrounding area too expensive for me. With mobility issues walking is difficult for me but it would be nice if I were able to go to the beach over the summer once and a while without having to pay the resident fee/tax for parking. Cobourg may be a tourist town but it has a very unfriendly attitude toward tourists. Myself I discovered Cobourg by visiting a resident, discovering the many spots to fish and decided to retire here.
As far as the marina goes it is a shame to have slips that are not used when they could be filled by residents but the piers will probably disintegrate due to lack of maintenance. Poor planning when Cobourg took them over in the state they were in.
So why all the staff at the Marina . ?? Who are we employing here ,
and I have heard complaints from many that there is is no assistant help when docking
large sailing craft or in locating the space which can be difficult some times .
Loads of Garbage to deal with .
And we could save a lot of foot traffic and congestion if there was more parking nearer the Beach
rather than tourists hauling all the stuff and their children across the Marina and through the homes and condos to the east and west .
The town giving away the Post office parking lot and not taking over the Heritage Building next to it was a mistake Not only would it service the Beach but the east end of King st would be well serviced as well Possibly the North end of Victoria Park will be parking in the future after all it had been long ago as well as the PLAZA Hotel .
And just to be sure these Tourists / Beach goers are not shopping local there may be some Other tourists that are but certainly not the Beach traffic
More parking near the beach? What is your proposal? Pave Victoria Park? Once again Sandpiper is complaining about how busy it is around their centrally located waterfront condo. You might as well have moved to Times Square in New York and complained about the tourists.
A friend of mine is a member of the Toronto multihull club and owns a 38ft Kelsall catamaran he built, so I have vicarious familiarity with the life. Cobourg is not far from Toronto and Cobourg offers advance booking. Boaters already have their weed and are largely food self sufficient unless there is a good restaurant or pub to attract them offshore. In the boating community, word spreads rapidly. The long term benefit of tourism is people may want to move here to escape Toronto.
What is missing are statistics on transient slip usage. Of the 50 total transient slips,
1. What is the overall percentage occupancy?
2. What is the weekend percentage occupancy?
3. What transient charge is needed to not lose money versus local permanent rental? Charge that.
I would like to see the Town and Economic Development departments study published for the last 10 yr sor so —on the rate of Turn over and Business Failure and Closure .
I would also like to have a real understanding as to why the Business closures direct from those Owners not the Towns version — I have been trying to get my hands on this since the Days Gone By when the Town spent a small fortune on DownTown Revitalization Program and Beautification The Turn over rate has increased steadily and faster since then
my numbers suggest close to 30 % every 2 years excluding Banks and Municipal offices .
Ted Williams has a valid point.
Other than the Trenton Marina, none of the other north shore marinas allocate more than a token few transient slips. Transient boaters are berthed in vacant seasonal slips when available, otherwise they rise at anchor.
Trenton is an oversized marina, considering the market, 375 slips. As of today Aug 12, 2024, Trenton has about 150 (40%) seasonal slips, similar to Cobourg, 56 (15%) transient slips and 165 (45%) “available” (unused??) slips. The marina’s recent annual deficit (taxpayer subsidy) is upwards of $1.6M. CFB Trenton has its own yacht club, which limits the Trenton marina numbers somewhat.
In Cobourg’s Waterfront Plan Study, the consultants noted that about 80% if the seasonal slips are rented by boaters who live within 45 minutes of the marina. Cobourg and Trenton’s market areas overlap, so it is reasonable that both have about the same number of seasonal slips.
Rob suggests a “Cobourg residents first” policy. I agree with this.
Rob’s other point regarding CYC costs is off base. The CYC’s membership is mostly social members and a small portion of the seasonal boaters. CYC fees are not part of the marina costs.
I’m of two minds on this issue…regarding the transient slips, I suspect its much to do about nothing. I think right of first refusal to residents, providing they can commit and pay a deposit in advance of February is more than fair. I doubt we have droves of local boats sailing elsewhere because of slip availability – if anything perhaps the cost of the CYC is pushing locals to other less expensive ports of call.
The pier absolutely needs to be repaired and beautified, including improvements to the lighthouse (LED lighting like the CN Towner and/or access to it). The current state of the pier is frankly very embarrassing and placing new benches on it, was just lipstick on an ugly pig. Fix the bloody thing and lets stop debating it. Will it bring tourists? Who cares…locals like nice things too. Keep it rather simple to start but scalable for improvements and additions. Limit input and community advisory groups, historical committees and special interests…sell the naming rights to a local philanthropist, Scotia Bank, RBC, Coke or Pepsi but get it done.
I would pause overt tourism advertising and redirect dollars into rebuilding our community – because we have an image problem right now.
We probably need to see some rationalization of restaurants in Town…far too many offering mediocre or similar menus and very few doing any of it properly. The same goes for cannabis stores, thrift/pawn shops and probably coffee shops. We need to understand what the revitalization of the Mall area looks like and how that can be leveraged. We need to understand what shops are going into the new development downtown and ensure they strategically satisfy the needs of the community (i.e. no pawn shops or weed shops) We need vibrant fall/winter attraction programming because Cobourg can be much more than a summer destination but we are missing that.
Rob
The residents should be primarily given primary use in boat slip ,
The beach virtually belongs to so called “tourists” during May through July and other time periods who bring all their needs with them ;never use the costly buses that the town provides for them during that major period ,leave their garbage on the streets; ;parks and beach and bring very little of benefit to the town.
Perhaps the council could give clarification to the locals on input from our local shop owners how their business’s are benefitting (or not) from tourism.