By Sharon Still
Under the new management of John “Smitty” Smith, Inter-Bay Moorings, a full-service and do-it-yourself ship repair yard in Gibsonton is undergoing a complete makeover from the inside out.
“The first rule on my list is customer satisfaction,” said Smith, who notes that with 35 years of experience in the industry, he has been doing this most of his life.
Inter-Bay Moorings offers services for commercial and pleasure boats that range from full maintenance, tune-ups and repair to carpentry and canvas work. Services also include full fiberglass repair, sandblasting, bottom jobs, gel coating, pressure washing and boat storage. There also is a welding shop on-site for all welding and fabrication.
Smith has a full network of contacts for any type of product or service needed for any type of vessel. “Anything that can wrong on a boat, I can get a guy for it,” he stated.
There are 40 deep water wet slips with 30 and 50 AMP water and electric service and all new floating docks are in process. “In May or June, we will be starting to progress on the new docks which will really open up this place,” he said. “The new docks will double the amount of boats that can come in.”
Other improvements include the addition of a 70-ton travel lift for boats up to 85 ft. long and 21.5 ft. wide, new signage and a recently installed new pump system for gas and diesel fuel. “We are the only place on the river to get gas and diesel,” Smith added.
The property also boasts a ship store, pump out facilities, laundry, restrooms, shower and pavilion with gas grill, electric smoker and picnic tables.
Inter-Bay Moorings is located at 6210 Ohio Ave. in Gibsonton, along the Alafia River just east of U.S. Hwy. 41. Office hours are 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. Call 677-2739, visit www.interbaymoorings.com and become a fan on Facebook for additional information.
