Chicago Marina Scope
I was in Monroe last year. You pay by the foot in the Chicago Marinas. My bill was just under 1000 for my C28. It was OK, but a roller coaster. 3/4 footers through the harbor were common. Unless you have a hard dingy and want to row out to the boat all the time, you have to use the tender service. With 1300 cans in the harbor, getting picked up on weekends and beer can nights sometimes takes an hour. I am happy to report that I have received my transfer to the new harbor just built directly north of and actually attached to Monroe Harbor. It is costing me $2300. Well worth the extra money as far as I'm concerned. Here's the scoop on availability. Last year was a light application year. I had no problems at all getting my can. This year may be a different story. I was talking to the Monroe harbor master towards the end of last season and he said he thought all the cans were already gone (except for transient cans). There is almost NO way at all of getting a slip in your first year. You will be in Monroe if you are new in the Chicago Harbor system. I'm sure there are exceptions but I've never heard of one. The only way I got my slip in this second year is they built a new harbor and monroe had first transfer rights. Lucky timing. Anyway...the harbor system is run by Westrec rather than the Chicago Park District and because of that they are run well. Their number is (312)747-0737. There's a ton of boats here in Chicago (mostly sailboats!) and many great people. I've had good experiences with them and will be here for a long time. I like keeping her here in Chicago rather than Michigan because nothing beats leaving work at 3pm and being outside the breakwall by 4pm. There are some harbors North of the city (eg. Waulkegean sp?) but traffic plays in how long it takes to get there. Hammond, IN is another alternative. 20 minutes to get there from downtown on the Skyway, but in afternoon traffic expect an hour trip. just my 2c. =) Mike Elmore Windward Hull-C28 Hull #7
