The Milltown Marina will be located on Richmond Island and Richmond Slough on the Vancouver side of the North Arm of the Fraser River (below the Fraser Arms Hotel). The site is eight kilometres upstream from the mouth of the Fraser and just downstream from the Arthur Laing Bridge. There are no bridges between the new marina and the Strait of Georgia.
Historically, the island was a grassy sandbar that flooded during high water. Between the 1930s and 1950s, the level of the island was raised with dredged river sand, faced with rip rap, and connected to the mainland by a boulder and sand filled causeway. It was later paved and used by the adjacent Canadian Forest Products sawmill as a lumber storage yard. The protected slough has been used as a log boom storage area for many years and will be dredged to accommodate the marina.
The marina project is a partnership between the Musqueam Indian Band and Bastion Development Corporation. Bastion is a Vancouver-based company with over 30 years experience in residential and commercial developments.
Vancouver yachtsman Captain Matthew Cote initiated the proposal for the marina and boatyard in 2009 and is the development manager for the Musqueam/Bastion joint effort. Cote holds an MCA commercial yacht captain’s licence (see “Dismasted: 1,600 Miles Under Jury Rig” PY, July 2007 and “Adventure Charter to the Galapagos,” PY, Oct. 2007) and has drawn on his firsthand knowledge of marina facilities and boating operations in many parts of the world. He has also developed a number of real estate properties.
Among the businesses that have expressed interest in the new facility are Platinum Marine (boat service and repair) and Freedom Marine (boat dealer).
Final approval is expected in February and once in place, the project will be completed over a 10-month period.
For more information on location, moorage rates and services, visit www.milltownmarina.com.
Accommodations
