Riviera Marina (on the western shores of Charlotte Harbor, between Burnt Store Marina and Punta Gorda)
Honestly, I have always considered this facility to be a “train wreck” on each and every occasion I have visited here since the first edition of my “Cruising Guide to Western Florida” in 1993. Clearly, there are others with a very different opinion, and Captain Broom (see below) is not the first to defend this facility and its owner.
The above comments [earlier reviews of this marina – editor] are a little out of date. Barry has continued to work on cleaning up after Charlie. Most all of the old boats are gone. Environmental problems have been taken care of. The biggest complaints come from cultural differences. Those of us that want a old Florida style DIY marina and those that have moved in recently and want a modern yachty marine. It is still a good usable marina that takes care of the locals here. Part of the problem has been people bringing in old boats to work on and then abandoning their. It would also help if people would stop dropping off their unwanted cats there, knowing that Barry will take care of them.
I have been a twenty year year resident in the neighborhood and not afraid to post my name.
Ted Broom
Well, as you will see below, I was challenged to amplify my “train wreck” comment above.
I have to say that describing a place as a `train wreck’ is not very useful. What exactly does that tell me? Some details about what is wrong (or right) with the place would help others to know what to expect and to make a decision whether to stop there or not.
Don Million
Well, here goes. I’ve never been at this facility where I did not spy a host of ugly, abandoned craft, spread around the grounds, and sometimes at the docks. The entire marina is overrun with the largest population of stray cats I’ve ever seen, and the odor of cat urine wafts its way through the air everywhere. There has always been other trash lying around, and the one time I met the marina owner, I was, to be blunt, not impressed. In short, this is one of those marinas/yards, where I’ve sometimes paused to ask myself how it could possibly have survived this many years. Clear enough?
Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Western Florida Marina Directory Listing For Riviera Marina
Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Riviera Marina
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