The Marine Service Center opened almost 20 years ago, and though its reputation for quality work gets better with age, the boat haul-out equipment gets older. The Port and Harbors Department should save up enough money for when the equipment needs replacing, said port commission candidate John Yeager.

Same for aging harbor floats, he said.

Yeager, in his 15th year on the port commission, is running unopposed for another three-year term. He is a tour operator and commercial fisherman.

“Maintenance and improvements are the foundation pieces of the harbor,” he said.

While building up reserve funds, it’s important that Wrangell remain competitive with its harbor rates, so as not to drive away business, Yeager said. “We’ve done several rates increases and we’re still below other communities in Southeast.”

The borough has received state and federal grants for harbor projects over the years, but grants are not a steady, dependable source of funding, he said.

Harbor rates need to be affordable, but holding them down too much makes it harder to build up reserves. “Then it becomes sticker shock to people” when the rates go up. It’s a balancing act, Yeager said.

“Everything is going to get more expensive to replace.”

The boat haul-out equipment at the Marine Service Center will be particularly expensive to replace when the time comes. The port commission and borough assembly earlier this year agreed to raise rates at the center, looking to strengthen its finances for when the big-ticket items wear out.

In addition to watching the numbers for future maintenance and equipment replacement, Yeager said he wants more discussion about the problem of inactive boats taking up space in the harbors.

“The (moorage) stall itself, it’s not a storage space. It’s not being used for its intended purpose,” he said of inoperable boats.

The port commission last month started discussion of a proposed ordinance to require boat owners to either show their boat has left the harbor under its own power or give up their moorage space.

“It’s an issue that needs to be addressed.”

Defining an “inactive” boat and setting the rules will not be easy, Yeager said. “If they’re paying their stall rent, what makes them a derelict vessel?”

He also wants Wrangell to have more quality moorage for transient vessels, providing spaces with dependable power hookups and access to water. It’d be good for the town’s economy to attract more boat owners to overwinter their vessels in town.

A managed amount of tourism growth also would be good for the community, he said. “Tourism is the low-hanging fruit for Wrangell for growth and development.”

He believes American Cruise Lines, which wants to work with the borough on building a new dock for its 170-passenger ships, is a good fit for town.

“People freak out about perception,” thinking about the massive cruise ships with several thousand passengers that call on Ketchikan, Sitka, Juneau and Skagway, he said. Wrangell can handle smaller passenger loads and still preserve its small-town, working community lifestyle.