Lakebay Marina and Resort in renewal process

Colleen Slater, KP News

The popular Lakebay Marina and Resort is getting a facelift while in operation. A grand opening is slated for April 15. Photo by Ed Johnson, KP News

As a boy from Wollochet Bay, Mark Scott loved to visit the Lakebay Marina by boat and buy a burger and candy bar. Today, Scott owns the marina and plans to return it to the place he remembers, with modern facilities.

Back then, the marina offered moorage, launching, gas, a café and store. The resort included campsites and cabins for rent.

Scott points to the paint color he remembers, robin’s egg blue, and will redo the marina with that as the main hue.

He has managed marinas in Seattle and is excited about bringing this historic site to renewed life as a destination for Puget Sound boaters. His parents’ home on Wollochet Bay is about 15 minutes away and Day Island is less than half an hour.

He envisions various events scheduled for the marina, such as a music festival and a farmers market, perhaps dances (again), and he’s open to other suggestions from the community.

Scott’s marina manager, Kerry Jamieson, a Key Peninsula native, has moored a boat there for 20 years, so it’s a familiar place for him.

Jamieson is an environmental specialist and former cabinet maker who built a Chris-Craft runabout while in high school, operated a tugboat, and was a former Flotilla commander for the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. Scott said Jamieson brings special skills and a lifetime interest in boats to his new position.

The landmark marina is presently getting shipshape.

Some deck boards need replacing, others need repair and made secure. Several old trees with rotten interiors were taken down, but the shop hums with daily activity, and each new improvement is a reason for celebration.

Three cabins near the shore, as well as a larger building that may have been a dance pavilion, need attention to make them usable. The house, built about 1920 by Dolly Caspary, Lakebay postmaster, begs for a new roof, paint, some interior repairs and extensive cleaning. In the early 1930s, Dr. Johnson lived there. He was an osteopath but delivered several local babies. It was once the parsonage for the Lakebay Community Church and Scott refers to it as The Parsonage House.

The warehouse for the Washington Cooperative Egg and Poultry Association was constructed on the decking in 1928, where local farmers could send their chickens and eggs off by boat. Barkemeyer was the first manager and the Burro, captained by Bert Berntson, was the last of the Mosquito Fleet to transport freight to and from the marina. Ernie Johnson was a later manager.

Bill Durerden took over the warehouse and dock to create the marina in the late 1950s. Reine Streich added floats and operated the marina most of the 1960s. He invited Puget Sound Yacht clubs to gather and set up dances for them.

Shane Hostetler arrived with his family as a 5-year-old in 1968, when his father bought the marina.

Scott and Jamieson’s main concerns in January were heat and water, including hot water.

There is ethanol-free gas available, the store is being stocked and an updated café is in process of being built. Jimmy Haskins, of Jimmy D’s Pub fame, plans to reopen the café this spring, Scott said.

The store is open and will soon be fully stocked with chips, pop, beer, wine, ice cream bars, candy, camping supplies and other items.

SoltronTM, an organic-based enzyme fuel additive that removes algae, moisture, sludge, reduces emission and increases power, is also available.

According to Scott, the marina is a licensed boat seller, handles yacht sales and is taking listings to sell boats for people.

He said the boat launch is available for a small fee and campsites will be ready this spring.

The goal for the Lakebay Marina grand opening is set for April 15, in time for the Bay Lake trout season. The marina is operating now with about 10 guest moorages, including space for rafting small groups of boats.

For more information, visit lakebaymarina.com.