Safety concerns close Trimmer Marina at Pine Flat

Owners must remove their boats by Dec. 20.

Published online on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2008

Dozens of Pine Flat Lake boat owners are being told to move their vessels or risk losing them after officials closed Trimmer Marina.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said the privately owned marina, one of two operating on the federally controlled lake, is being shut down because of "significant safety concerns."

By Dec. 20, owners must remove their boats or move them to the Pine Flat Lake Marina, which has been authorized to handle the overflow. Boats left past that date will be treated as abandoned property and impounded at the owner's expense.

Tom Ehrke, a senior ranger with the Corps of Engineers, described the condemned wooden docks as dilapidated and full of dry rot. One dock sitting on the water's edge contained loose boards and exposed nails.

"We've had storms where boards would actually fall out," Ehrke said. "Other times they float down the lake because they're not anchored properly."

Ehrke said officials worked with the marina's owner for months to address those safety concerns before deciding to terminate its operating permit.

"We don't want people to leave the lake, and we don't want to close a facility," Ehrke said. "This one just didn't meet the safety standards."

Last week, rangers counted 128 boats moored at the 200-slip marina, Ehrke said. By Wednesday, that number had dropped to about 75.

Trimmer Marina owner Adrian Spence declined to comment. The marina's phone number is disconnected.

Located 30 miles northeast of Fresno, Pine Flat Lake stores 1 million acre-feet of water from the Kings River when at capacity. The lake is currently 16% full.

Trimmer Marina is not like a pier at the ocean, rooted to one spot. As Pine Flat's water levels drop in late summer and fall due to irrigation demands, most of its docks are moved from one part of the lake to another. The docks are anchored to the shore by cables.

Spence provides shuttle service from shore to dock in a houseboat. People honk their car horn to summon him.

The marina, which also has a campground, store and cafe, generally appears unkempt and run down. One dock sits half on land and half in the shallows, looking as if it has been tossed by an earthquake.

Two weathered houseboats are moored at slips, but they're used for storage: a barbecue, propane tanks, life vests, paint cans, a worn couch.

Ehrke said the marina went into a 60-day safety closure period June 11 so that upgrades could be made to bring the docks into compliance with Corps of Engineers standards. The owner received one extension before failing a final inspection Oct. 3.

Edward Abraham and his wife, Susan Perry, both truck drivers, have kept their double-decker, 10-by-32-foot houseboat at Trimmer Marina for about four years. They were in Washington state last week, preparing to haul jet aircraft engines across the country, when they learned they had two weeks to move their boat.

Abraham said they had to cancel their job and rush home to Fresno. He said they still haven't found a solution but thinks they'll have to haul the boat to a storage shed.

"We're aghast," Abraham said.

Abraham estimated their costs -- the lost trucking job, moving and storing the houseboat, the now worthless lease at the marina -- to be around $5,000. He says his slip rental costs about $1,200 annually.

Trimmer Marina was a community, Abraham said. He and his wife spent many holiday weekends on the lake, relaxing from their demanding job, entertaining friends, enjoying the company of other boat owners who anchored an important part of their lives to the lake and those now-condemned docks.

"We've all been like family," Abraham said. "It's a real heartbreaker."

Abraham said he and his wife never felt endangered by the condition of Trimmer Marina's docks but understand both sides.

"Adrian is a real nice man," he said. "He just let things get out of control."

Abraham said the Corps of Engineers has its responsibilities, too: "The Corps is doing what they should be doing."

Debbie Kimberling, an employee at Doyal's Store in nearby Piedra, said she has been hearing complaints from Trimmer Marina boat owners for months. Many are upset about losing their mooring and worried their boats will be impounded if they don't act fast enough.

"A lot of people are angry," Kimberling said.

Officials are trying to find another operator, Ehrke said.

Boat owners who still need to make arrangements to remove their boats before the Dec. 20 impound deadline are asked to call Ehrke at (559) 787-2589.