Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
5 June 2008
By Moriah Balingit
Joseph Bendel, the late mayor of McKeesport, was not a boat person.
In fact, after he bought a boat in 1998, he and his wife usually just let it idle where it was docked at the McKees Point Marina. He liked to relax and watch other boaters because he wasn't very good behind the wheel.
"You could tell he wasn't a person who ... knew his way around a boat," said his son, Patrick.
So it is somewhat ironic that the newly erected lighthouse at the McKees Point Marina, a modestly sized tower wrapped in black and white stripes, bears his name.
The sparkling marina, built 11 years ago with 200 slips and a sturdy dock in the shadow of the Jerome Street Bridge, was his vision. He hoped it would be a part of a larger plan to uplift the city, which was economically crippled following the closing of the steel mills.
On Memorial Day weekend, the marina's 11th boating season opened with a dedication ceremony for the lighthouse. The city also will reopen and run the restaurant, which was closed last season, in the Palisades building adjacent to the marina.
This year, with 168 of its 182 available slips filled, the marina is close to its capacity. And for the past three years, it's been financially self-sustaining, said current Mayor Jim Brewster.
The slips are priced at $32 per foot of the length of a boat for the 30-foot docks and $29 per foot of the length of a boat for the 20-foot docks.
The city also hopes to refurbish the last link of the Rails to Trails path that could potentially draw hundreds of cyclists to the marina. It also is in the process of courting grant money to expand the docks.
Mr. Brewster, who was on city council in 1997, said there was little support when the marina was proposed.
Mr. Bendel, who was then mayor, told those around him that he believed the Youghiogheny and Monongahela rivers, which meet in McKeesport, were untapped resources that could be made a "destination point" for the city.
"Most of the communities that have the same problems we have do not have rivers," said Mr. Brewster, who backed the plan. "We wanted to capitalize on that resource."
The city was founded at the point between the two rivers in 1796 by the son of David McKee, who operated a ferry there.
Mr. Bendel hoped the marina would provide an opportunity to anchor a comeback for the city. He even dreamed a boat could ferry commuters from McKeesport to the banks of Pittsburgh, to unclog the roads.
"He knew if he went back to the roots of where the city began, it could go back to where it was," said Ray Dougherty, who now manages the marina.
The city obtained federal grants and loans to help fund the $3 million project and the marina opened in the spring of 1997.
But less than four years later, in January 2001, disaster struck. A massive ice pack that had built up on the Youghiogheny River squeezed downstream, ripping through a debris deflector. When it got to the marina, it tore the docks from the shore, causing $1 million in damage.
"The ice just grabbed the fingers [of the docks] and it just took them," Mr. Dougherty said.
"Anytime you invest $3 million and see it floating down the river, it's frustrating," Mr. Brewster said.
The marina was insured and was fully reopened the following year. Now, the docks are removed after the boating season ends to deter such an accident.
The quality of the docks is one thing that draws boaters, Mr. Dougherty said. Unlike some docks, which rock back and forth as people walk on them, these are so solidly planted that it's almost like "standing on a sidewalk,'' he said.
Unlike other marinas, this one is quiet, with only the occasional groan of trains on the nearby railroad bridge interrupting the sound of ducks on the river. No barges or commercial traffic travel on this part of the Youghiogheny.
And while the high price of gasoline may put a damper on other recreational activities, Mr. Dougherty does not believe it will reduce the amount of boat traffic. In fact, he said, it may increase the number of people who lease slips because it could be expensive to tow a boat back and forth.
"People realize it's cheaper to rent the dock space," he said.
This season also will see the reopening of the McKees Point Cafe, which will now be run by the city. Mr. Brewster said it is expected to open within the next few weeks and be open weekends and for special events.
The blocks surrounding the marina still bear evidence of a city in decline. There is a scattering of apartments and warehouses, but many of the buildings appear to have been long abandoned. The most ubiquitous site is churches, some also abandoned, whose steeples dominate the horizon.
Local merchants said they do not see an significant upswing in business when the boaters come in the summer.
Pete Contakos, 66, runs Tube City Beer Distribution not far from the docks. He said that boaters provide a "slight" increase in business during the summer, but added that every little bit counts.
He likes the marina, even if it's not creating a measurable increase in commerce.
"Anything is good for the area," he said. "There's nothing left in McKeesport."
Mr. Brewster said the progress will be slow and that he is looking long term when considering potential benefits of the marina.
"It's always difficult for people to appreciate visionary projects," he said. "You have to talk about the next two, three, four decades."
He added that the marina has aesthetic value. Previously, the shore was overgrown with vegetation and was "an eyesore."
The marina is "just one piece of the puzzle" in the city's economic development and eventually could act as a draw for investors. He aspires to have a hotel built near the marina someday.
"What we should do is give people hope and help them get excited," he said.
Moriah Balingit can be reached at mbalingit@post-gazette.com or 412-263-2533.