Seattle Marinas with covered moorage are becoming a rarity.

Salmon Bay Marina in Seattle is unique in many ways. It has available moorage. The covered moorage was designed in 1962 with provisions for weather and fire protection. Many safeguards were used in Salmon Bay Marinas Seattle construction. The marina has covered and open moorage plus storage and the safeguards are consistant throughout. Those same safeguards may not be accepted for future covered marina development in Seattle.

The City of Seattle, the State of Washington DNR, the Tribes and the Federal Government are generating significant hurdles for new marina construction. If you think Salmon have a tough path to follow, you haven't tried to process any water-related construction project through the Seattle Building Department and State Agencies. We recently received permits to repair a three-pile dolphin (three piling tied together) after waiting since September 2002. We received the permits on April 10, 2003 and were told to have the work completed in the impossible time by April 15 2003 or wait until October. The Department of Fisheries is closing the waters on the Lake Washington Ship Canal to construction through September due to fish migration. I can barely imagine how long it would take to develop a new marina facility.

The City of Seattle placed a moratorium on covered moorage construction several years ago. The Washington State fish psychologists (Department of Fisheries) have determined that some fish do not like to swim in the shade, therefore covered moorage and even floats are "bad" for fish. Washington State Fisheries have a study on the effects of overwater structures indicating many of the issues. As for us humans, The City indicates everyone has the right to see the water. The City has created specifics for view corridors. Covered moorage reduces the view corridor. City Code requires "A view corridor or corridors of not less than fifty (50) percent of the width of the waterway shall be provided and maintained for all developments" (SMC 23.60.518 View corridors.). For a brief summary of additional "recreational marina" requirements visit. Shoreline Management recites the additional City restrictions.

Other reasons for declining covered moorage include the misconception that safety is reduced if a fire or storm occurs and a boat is in covered moorage. Preventative measures can be adopted in the construction and maintenance of covered marinas that can significantly reduce hazard potentials

Construction of covered marinas with weather / fire protection:

The way a marina is constructed can affect its tenant's vulnerability to fire and weather elements. Covered moorage is either built on piling or on floats. Covered moorage constructed on floats is usually found in waters where the water level varies more than a few feet. Those areas include rivers and tidal basins. The floating structures require special construction considerations to hold the side walkways in place and maintain the structural integrity of the roof. Snow loads are important in this type of structure. If too much snow remains on the float or roof, then the structure may become unstable or sink (along with the boat). This phenomenon happened a few years ago to several marinas in the Puget Sound area (Salmon Bay Marina was not damaged).

We are fortunate to have a well-built marina on pile in the Lake Washington Federal Ship Canal. The water level of the Lake Washington Ship Canal varies only two feet from summer to winter. Since water level fluctuations are not a major issue, we were able to support roofs and walkways with heavy 12 to 14 inch diameter piling. Most of the roof membrane at the marina is made from aluminum. Why aluminum roofs if weight of the roof is not as important? Aluminum is a good preventative measure in case a fire occurs. In the event of a fire erupting, the roof will melt letting the heat out. Marina fires at other marinas have resulted in extraordinary damage to boats due to flames and heat traveling horizontal instead of vertical. Having a "melt able roof" reduces lateral heat build up. To isolate and protect marina sections, Salmon Bay incorporated firebreaks and firewalls throughout the marina. We also implemented dry fire hose standpipes on each of the three main piers. These standpipes are tested regularly with the main connection point at each pier entrance.

Additional fire suppression issues in marinas:

We reviewed a potential of placing a sprinkler system under the roofs. By examining boater tenancies, structural issues and climatic conditions, we determined such a system would cause greater general hazards due to: boat flying bridge clearances, the unknowing tenant (or crew) hanging something from the sprinkler and breaking the line, a broken sprinkler line filling a boat with water, frozen pipes, and difficult maintenance issues.

Maintenance issues of marinas:

One must remember that a marina is a dynamic structure. Each time a boat travels by a marina, the boat's wake will shake the whole structure causing potential damage and maintenance issues. Costly maintenance is part of the equation for having covered moorage verses open moorage. Covered moorage has significantly higher maintenance costs including roofs to repair and fasteners to continually repair or replace. Imagine your house having a 2.o earthquake daily, or even hourly.

Land and water base vehicular considerations:

It is important to have vehicle traffic areas (fire lanes) kept clear in the event of immediate need by the fire department. It is also important to keep waterways clear in the event a fireboat or rapid access via water to the marina or its tenants is required. Covered moorage can restrict visibility from one waterway to another. It is therefore critical to keep rafting boats in marina waterways (fairways) to a minimum. The Seattle Fire Department inspects our marina regularly and is familiar with where standpipes are, where our clear fire lanes are and where the water fairway locations are between our piers. It is refreshing to know they are watching out for our well being.

Insurance: Insurance companies have overlooked the construction differences between various covered moorage structures. As a result, many covered moorages are placed into a single classification. That classification is expensive. Some Seattle moorage's have eliminated their covered moorage feature altogether and become only open moorage structures partially due to the high cost of insurance riders.

Boaters recognize the benefits of covered moorage verses open moorage, including reduced exterior boat maintenance and even being able to enjoy the northwest weather without having to be in it all the time. Lets face it; covered moorage is like a beach cabin for you and your boat.

Article written by C Draper Jr.