BAINBRIDGE ISLAND — Liveaboards facing moorage increases of about 30% at the city’s Dave Ullin Open Water Marina won more time to respond to renewal notices Nov. 10, as the City Council agreed to revisit the rates before new agreements take effect.
The council voted 6-0 to direct city staff to notify residents that the Nov. 20 response deadline would be extended to allow council discussion. The vote did not cancel the increases or set replacement rates.
Residents told the council that the increases, scheduled for Jan. 1, could force them to leave the Eagle Harbor marina. Several argued that Washington’s residential rent limits should protect people whose boats serve as their primary homes.
One resident described taking her children to school by dinghy, burning diesel for heat and electricity in winter, and receiving an offer for a conventional marina slip with utilities and other services for less than the new mooring cost. Others said the liveaboard community helps watch the harbor and responds when boaters need assistance.
Councilmember Mike Nelson asked whether the city could absorb enough of the increase to limit residents’ costs to 10%. Deputy Mayor Kirsten Hytopoulos supported revisiting the charges but said an immediate subsidy adopted during budget deliberations would not resolve the underlying questions.
“The answer is for us to figure out how to not charge that, and then if we have to charge, if we have costs we have to recover, we need to talk through with the staff how do we deal with those costs,” Hytopoulos said.
City Manager John Mauro said current agreements run through Dec. 31 and characterized Nov. 20 as a request for residents to indicate whether they want to continue, rather than the date their existing agreements end. He said staff could bring the issue back before Jan. 1.
Mauro said rising state Department of Natural Resources charges were part of the rate problem, citing annual costs that increased from roughly $36,000 in 2024 to roughly $62,000 in 2026.
The city’s posted policy bases moorage charges on state rent and annual buoy maintenance costs, divided among vessels by length. It gives priority for vacant buoys to households earning no more than 60% of Kitsap County’s area median income and provides an income-qualified discount.
The meeting did not resolve whether the state Residential Landlord-Tenant Act applies to the moorage agreements, a central point raised by residents. Councilmember Ashley Mathews said she had already submitted a request to bring the issue back for council discussion.
The city’s marina policy and 2027 rate table are available at https://bainbridgewa.gov/1467/Dave-Ullin-Open-Water-Marina.
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