FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AUGUST 17, 2005
20th annual marina survey shows continued growth of industry
COLLEGE STATION, TX — The number of marinas in Texas has increased by 15 percent since 1986, including a 35 percent rise in inland marinas, according to a recent poll of marina operators by the Texas Sea Grant College Program.
The 20th annual survey shows 355 marinas in Texas, compared to 309 in 1986. The number of coastal marinas has decreased by 15 percent to total 106 today, while the number of inland marinas has increased from 184 to 249. Seventy percent of Texas’ marinas are located on freshwater.
“The marina industry continues to evolve,” said Dewayne Hollin, Texas Sea Grant marine business specialist. “Some of the coastal marinas have gone out of business, and some are converting to condominiums or other waterfront projects.
“On the inland side, they’re adding more marina facilities on lakes, which are closer to major markets in the Austin and Dallas areas. Clear Lake, near Houston, remains the largest boating area in the state,” he said.
The survey also found that:
• The average wet slip capacity of both coastal and inland marinas in 2005 is 122 slips — a number that is the same as the average in 1986 for inland marinas and an increase from an average of 105 in 1986 for coastal marinas.
• Marinas at both ends of the size range are decreasing in number, while intermediate sizes have increased. In 1986, more than half of all marinas in Texas had fewer than 50 wet slips; today, while marinas of that size still make up the largest group of Texas marinas — 44 percent — the percentages and numbers of marina facilities ranging in size from 100 to 999 slips have increased. At the opposite end of the scale, marinas with 1,000 or more wet slips have decreased from three in 1986 to just one today.
• Dry storage of boats has increased by more than 71 percent since the first survey, and today one out of every four boats at a Texas marina is in dry storage, which can involve individual locked storage units or a specially designed building where boats are stacked in compartments. Larger dry-stack facilities usually offer more maintenance and repair services than wet storage facilities.
The Texas boating area with the greatest boat storage capacity is Clear Lake/Galveston Bay, with 38 marinas that provide 8,207 wet slips and 2,270 dry boat storage units. The Clear Lake area alone has 23 marinas with 6,293 wet slips and 1,560 dry boat storage slots. The next largest is Lake Travis, which also has 38 marinas with a capacity of 4,193 wet slips and 2,040 dry slots.
The other Texas boating areas, ranked by boat storage capacity, are Lake Conroe, Lake Texoma, Lake Ray Hubbard, Lake Lewisville, Corpus Christi/Port Aransas/Aransas Pass/Rockport, Eagle Mountain Lake, Lake Grapevine and Canyon Lake. The top 10 make up more than 71 percent of the total boat storage capacity in the state and 45 percent of the total marinas.
More marinas are now providing services including pumpout facilities, boat rentals, grocery stores/snack bars and on-site lodging or RV parks. On the other hand, compared to 20 years ago, fewer marinas are now providing access to haul-out facilities, repair services, retail sales of boats and boat equipment, and fuel docks.
“Some of these services require good technicians, and it’s not always going to be profitable. So a marina may contract out to a service center away from the water — and by doing boat repair away from the water, there’s less risk for potential environmental damage,” Hollin said.
The annual survey of marina operators is used to produce the 2005 Texas Marina Facilities and Services Directory, which is available from Texas Sea Grant for $8.15 per copy by contacting Hollin at (409) 845-3857 or dhollin@ neo.tamu.edu. The listing of the state’s marinas includes contact information and data on numbers of wet slips, dry storage and ramps, and indicates which services are available from a menu that includes haul-out, boat repair, boat sales, fuel dock, pump-out, boat rental, charter, bait and tackle, food, and lodging or RV sites.
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News editors: A copy of the Texas Recreation Facilities Data Base 2005, compiled from the 2005 survey, is enclosed.
For more information, contact:
Dewayne Hollin at 979-845-3857
or by e-mail at dhollin@neo.tamu.edu
NR 05-10
Powell 8/16/05
The Texas Sea Grant College Program is a partnership of university,
government and industry, focusing on marine research, education
and advisory services. Visit our web site at http://texas-sea-grant.tamu.edu
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