Huron, Ohio, Marina Set for Auction in September

There’s only a certain amount of shoreline on Lake Erie — and about 400 feet of it is going up for auction next month.

Harbor Point Marina, located on 3.84 acres in Huron, Ohio, will go to auction September 25. The minimum bid of $1.15 million will be the reserve price, says Mark Abood of Colliers, the company handling the transaction.

“Whatever the high bid is over that number, it’s gone that day,” he says. “The market really will determine what it’s worth.

“If you’re interested in this type of asset, I would absolutely attend the auction. These kinds of opportunities don’t come along but once in a lifetime.”

The current owner of the marina is Harbor Point Marina LLC, a Washington D.C.-based company that bought the property in 2020. The original property included a U.S. Geological Survey site, which has been split off into a separate parcel, with a 6,885-square-foot office building including a marina and boat dock. That is being sold in a more traditional manner.

Since the purchase, more than $2 million has been spent on improvements at the marina, including new pavement, new seawall, a dredge and a new building that’s currently home to a store.

 “The current owner put a lot of money into it, and someone else is going to get the benefit of that,” Abood says.

The purchase price would also include personal property at the marina, including jack stands, boat stands and cranes. “Whoever buys it can turn the key and operate it as they see fit,” Abood says. There’s also an option to buy a retail liquor license for $25,000. “Those are hard to come by at that price,” he says.

Business is good at the marina, Abood says, noting that all 65 boat slips are rented. The owner is out of town and simply wants to sell the site. It was put up for sale with another broker for $2.3 million, with no takers, Abood says. They then opted to put the property up for auction.

“They decided they wanted a date-certain conclusion of ownership,” he says. “They wanted to show the market they’re serious about selling. The best way to do that is with a below-market published reserve price and let the active market determine the final price.”

 Open houses are scheduled for Sept. 4, 11 and 18 to view the property. The new owner will have a chance to ease into operations of the marina, Abood says, noting that the sale will finalize at a time when boaters are pulling their crafts out of the water and having them prepared for winter storage.

“Nothing’s going to change as far as the operation goes with regards to commitment to the boating community,” he says.

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