Less than six months after Merrill-Stevens was forced into foreclosure auction, it has a new owner well-versed in the yacht business.
The new owner is David Marlow, chairman of Marlow Marine Sales, which includes Marlow Yachts, a builder of boats to 86 feet. The acquisition is in its final stages, with the yard now to be known as Marlow Merrill Stevens.
In a statement released yesterday, Marlow explained, “In recent times the famed yard was beset by difficult economic conditions causing a diminution of her proud past. It is Marlow’s firm plan to restore that dignity and proud heritage to its proper place as perhaps the most iconic yard in our nation.” He referred to Merrill-Stevens’ founding in 1885 and its move to the Miami River in the 1920s. He also referred to its production of PT boats during World War II and its more recent history of hauling and repairing megayachts.
Among the first orders of business will be upgrading the on-site machine shop and related facilities. “When completed the yard will appear park-like, kept spotlessly clean like all Marlow facilities and offer the most complete array of services in the marine industry, from new builds of virtually any size to complete rehabilitation of fine yachts,” Marlow said.
Merrill-Stevens had long specialized in servicing yachts to 155 feet in the water and hauling yachts to 500 gross tons. Certain to aid matters is the fact that the Miami River was recently dredged, to a 21-foot depth.
The renovation of facilities and re-activation of business at the site naturally means more jobs. “The direct and indirect creation of hundreds of respectable jobs with significant capital infusion will enhance the entire industry over time,” Marlow stated. “This large investment to the marine industry during turbulent global times exemplifies Marlow’s commitment to the industry spanning over 45 years to date.”
While Marlow didn’t reveal the acquisition price, according to a report in the Miami Herald, it was $6.6 million, paid to Coconut Grove Bank. That’s the same amount the bank paid when it bid for the property during the foreclosure auction. The Miami Herald quoted Horacio Stuart Aguirre, a broker with Dixon Commercial Real Estate, which handled the sale, as saying, “David Marlow is a gift. This is just what this industry needed.”
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