Garrison marina concession requests fall on deaf ears
Garrison marina concession requests fall on deaf ears
By STU MERRY
It looks like its back to the drawing board for officials with the North Dakota Parks and Rec. Department.
Though interest was high in finding out what was included in operating the new Fort Stevenson State Park Marina Concession Operation, when it came down to submitting applications not one proposal was received.
Monday was the deadline for submitting plans to the North Dakota Parks and Rec. Department. When it came time to review proposals the letter opener was left in the drawer. Last week, Parks and Rec. officials said about 10 inquiries had been received.
Department officials said they were left scratching their heads as to why no responses were received. Doug Prchal, Parks and Rec. director, said he thinks there were a number of reasons potential operators considered in making their decision. He explained:
“The fact that the new marina isn’t finished may have been a factor. Earlier lake elevation projections were not necessarily showing enough water to operate the old marina in 2009, possibly affecting decisions,” he said.
Prchal said potential operators also might have had difficulty lining up capital investors to purchase docks and other amenities to outfit the new Garrison Bay Marina and concession building.
Parks and Rec. officials said they felt enough details were presented to give potential operators a full spectrum of what such an undertaking would entail.
“We’d rather have been up-front with what it would take to fulfill the expected operation levels than to minimize the proposal and potentially have a business failure within a year or two,” Prchal said.
