Richmond Yacht Club expands to Anchor Point Marina in Hopewell

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Carefree Boat Club of Central Virginia plans to expand to Anchor Point Marina in Hopewell, pictured here, next month. (Courtesy of Carefree Boat Club of Central Virginia)

A Richmond yacht club drops anchor on the Appomattox.

Carefree Boat Club of Central Virginia plans to launch its first trips from Anchor Point Marina in Hopewell beginning early next month. This will be the third location for the club, which also operates on the James River at Rocketts Landing and Lake Anna.

Carefree Boat Club markets itself as a hassle-free, lower-cost alternative to boat ownership, allowing members access to boats the club owns and maintains for a monthly fee.

Local club initiation fees are between $3,500 and $5,000. Members pay a monthly fee of $300 to $500 and for the fuel they use. Members have the choice of a home marina and, for an additional fee, have access to other club locations.

Tim Baker

“We want to make sure that the members who are here not only have a variety of boats, but also a variety of hospitality venues,” local club co-owner Tim Baker said of the expansion.

The club plans to start with one boat at Anchor Point and add one or two more by the end of the year. He is currently renting a slip at Anchor Point. The club rents five slides from Kingsland Reach Marina in Rocketts Landing and four slides from Sturgeon Creek Marina on Anna Lake.

Baker said an expansion to Hopewell was not on the club’s radar until earlier this year when he brought a boat for repairs to the Richmond Marine Center in Chester and was able to chat with the manager of the office of the boat dealer, Theresa Pulley.

Pulley, who also works part-time at Anchor Point, put Baker in touch with marina manager Tim Bednar and talks ensued about expanding there.

Bednar said the arrangement was attractive as a way to bring more people and businesses to the Hopewell Marina, located at 303 Beacon Ridge Drive.

“We are always looking to bring more traffic to Anchor Point. Over the years it has been a little slower at this marina and we are trying to bring business back here,” he said, noting that the marina is also working on deferred maintenance.

Anchor Point has 113 slips, 75 of which are currently serviceable, Bednar said.

The Hopewell Marina is located on the Appomattox River, which Baker says was a draw not only because it expands the club’s footprint, but also provides a different waterscape than Lake Anna or the section. of the James River which is home to the Richmond outpost.

“You have a wider area of ​​river to play with. There’s also a sandbar and it’s a public attraction,” Baker said. “The Hopewell boating community is a very welcoming and family friendly environment.”

Baker said he and club co-owner Nick Bawa invested about $500,000 to expand to Hopewell and also set up a new state-licensed boat training program and new amenities for members. of the club.

Baker said the club currently has around 40 members and hopes to have between 225 and 250 members by the end of 2024.

The club has seven boats and five employees.

Baker joined Carefree as a managing partner in February. Bawa bought the club along with Mike Broggie, Jeff Palumbo and Pat Hull in 2019. Baker said Broggie and Palumbo have since walked away from the club and Hull has since died.

Carefree Boat Club, which was launched in 2002, has licensees worldwide operating over 100 locations, including the Richmond area license. Baker said other Carefree clubs elsewhere in the country have seen strong growth during the pandemic, but his club has missed out and he hopes to capture some of that demand now that he is at the helm.

“As COVID continued, families gravitated towards entities like Carefree Boat Club and club growth was exponential,” he said. “Except for Richmond. The reality was that they didn’t have their hands in the mix to really capitalize on what was happening. They didn’t have time to get involved in day-to-day operations because they also had other businesses to run.

Baker is full time at the club. He was in the navy and has a background in the financial sector. More recently, he has been involved with local startups such as GoGo Band, which he co-founded in 2016 but has since left.

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