By Michael Burke
Al Arnold was one of the first boaters to tie up at Reefpoint Marina when it opened in 1987. But after about five years there, he drifted over to dock in Sheboygan’s harbor.
Now the Beloit resident is back at Reefpoint and more impressed with it than ever. Arnold, 76, a pilot, returned last fall with his 31-foot Sea Ray Sundancer power boat.
“They keep telling me, ‘Anything you need, you let us know and we’ll see what we can do.’ ”
Arnold added, “That was an attitude that was not prevalent in the past — and that’s putting it politically correctly.”
The marina’s new management says they have made customer service a priority, which already seems to be paying off as more slips are being rented. In May 2013, Racine County hired Milwaukee- based Siegel-Gallagher Management Co. to improve marina operations.
“We brought them in to be kind of the captain of the ship,” Racine County Executive Jim Ladwig said.
It was the property management company’s first marina. But by season’s end it had earned a five-year contract to manage Reefpoint, starting this year.
It’s often said that numbers don’t lie. Last year, only 390 of the marina’s approximately 900 usable boat slips were filled.
Cold weather has delayed the start of boating season by about a month this year. But as of Thursday, 476 boaters were paid in full for the season, a 22 percent increase so far compared with last year.
“And we’re signing up new boaters every day,” marina General Manager Carrie Neubecker said.
She said customer service is the top reason more boaters are choosing Reefpoint this year. There’s a focus on “one on-one interaction” by everyone including the dock hands.
“You have to find the right employee to be that dock hand,” said Neubecker, whose background is hotel management.
Reefpoint’s goal is to respond to every request within a half-hour, she said, or tell the boater why it can’t be immediately addressed.
“The feedback we are getting is really tremendous,” Ladwig said. “They’re operating at levels we haven’t seen here in many years.”
Investing in Reefpoint
Rich and Josie Grosse of Des Plaines, Illinois, docked in Winthrop Harbor, Illinois, for years. But this year the retired couple have their 36-foot Hunter sailboat at Reefpoint.
After becoming disenchanted with Winthrop Harbor, the Grosses compared Kenosha’s and Racine’s marinas and chose Reefpoint. They come here even though it’s a slightly longer drive, and a higher slip fee than they paid in Illinois.
“(Neubecker) and the company is putting money into this marina,” Rich said.
That’s definitely true, Neubecker said. Reefpoint’s break-even point is about 350 boaters at most, she said. But, other than keeping about $50,000 as a rainy day fund, she said all the profits are being spent to improve facilities — replacing docks, decking, fuel pumps, floats and the like.
“There were 25 years of deferred maintenance,” she said. “... We’re definitely putting the money back into the docks where it belongs.”
“It’s a really great amenity that draws people from Illinois, and it’s not costing taxpayers anything,” Ladwig said. “It’s a self-sustaining operation.”
Word of mouth
Neubecker said the marina’s cleaning staff has been increased, and Grosse said they’ve noticed “nice, clean bathrooms.”
“One thing I am very pleased with is: Everything (Neubecker) said they were going to do, they’re doing,” Grosse said.
For example, he said the couple requested a second 30-amp electrical power service be installed at their dock to serve their boat.
“Two weeks later, the additional power supply is in.”
Rich said the Grosses have convinced at least two other boaters they know to join them at Reefpoint, and others they know may follow as well.
“Word of mouth is huge: boaters talking to other boaters,” Neubecker said.
Other improvements
For Siegel-Gallagher’s second year at Reefpoint, it took over the dock-side shop in the marina’s main building. Soliciting boater opinions, they reshuffled the merchandise lineup in the shop nowcalled Anchors Away Ship Store. It now offers marine and boating supplies, breakfast sandwiches, a fresh-coffee station, kringle and hand-scooped ice cream.
Other changes include:
¦ A new, private firm, Belle City Coastal Tours, this season offers Racine-area historical tours and taxi service for boaters.
¦ Downtown restaurants and retailers make occasional presentations, and restaurants offer samples. Neubecker said the sessions have been well-attended.
¦ Special events are held every month, and boaters get a list ofDowntown events.
Much of what holds boaters, however, is cleanliness, whether it’s bathrooms or docks. Keeping them free of seagull droppings is a daily battle.
But Neubecker said the ultimate weapon against that problem is having lots of boaters, because gulls don’t like being around people.
Reefpoint can also look ahead and see promise: Neubecker said she already has new boaters prepaid in full for next year.
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