An inspector showed up on a Thursday morning while I was rigging outriggers. He was polite, thorough, and visibly embarrassed. He checked my federal charter license, my state fishing license, my vessel insurance, my safety inspection certificate, and my passenger for hire endorsement. Everything was current.
Everything was clean. He closed the complaint in 40 minutes and told me off the record that the complaint had no merit and that whoever filed it should probably find a hobby.
Then she went after the slip itself. Harbor Point's Marina has 32 slips. Slip one is the premium position, closest to the channel, deepest water, best protection from northeast wind. I've held slip one since I moved in, assigned by the previous board based on seniority and vessel size.
Vivian decided she wanted slip one for a different purpose. The board has voted to redesignate slip one as a community courtesy vessel space, she announced at the April meeting. For visiting guests and prospective buyers who wish to experience the waterfront lifestyle. Prospective buyers.
Vivian's prospective buyers. The slip where my boat, my livelihood, my wife's memorial had been docked for 6 years was being repurposed as a showroom for Vivian's real estate business. "Where am I supposed to dock?" I asked.
"Slip 29 is available. It's a perfectly adequate space." Slip 29 was at the far end of the marina, exposed to the northeast fetch with a silted-in approach that was barely 5 feet deep at low tide. The Sarah Grace draws 4 feet 2 inches.
At low tide, I'd be sitting in mud. I refused the reassignment. Elena Bradshaw, my attorney, a maritime lawyer out of Wilmington who'd spent 20 years fighting dock disputes and could cite admiralty precedent the way most people cite song lyrics, sent a letter reminding the board that slip assignments couldn't be unilaterally changed without proper notice, a quorum vote with documented minutes, and legitimate cause. Vivian's community courtesy vessel space met none of those requirements.
Vivian backed down. But, 2 weeks later, while I was on a 3-day offshore trip running a charter to the Gulf Stream, someone unplugged my shore power cable and disconnected my water line. When I returned, the bait freezer had thawed. 40 lb of Ballyhoo, 60 lb of squid, and 20 lb of cut bonito all spoiled. $2,100 in lost product.