ECONOMY
ST. LUCIE COUNTY
Expect to see mega yachts like this one undergoing maintenance, repair and overhaul by Fort Pierce Yacht & Ship at the Port of Fort Pierce as Derecktor Shipyard
of Dania begins to operate there. Hundreds of jobs will be created both directly and indirectly.
ST. LUCIE COUNTY
The new $7.9-million hangar building at the
airport will accommodate planes the size of a
narrow-body Boeing 737 or an Airbus A320 plus a
corporate jet the size of an Embraer 175. Ground
was broken for construction in May.
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commodate yachts as long as 325 feet or
more. A drydock allows boats to float into
a rectangular space with a gate across
the front. The water is pumped out of the
space so workers can reach the hull area
that is normally below the water.
While this is going on, the county will
be demolishing the old packing house
that sits at the front of the working port.
Another building, just to its northwest, will
remain and be renovated into offices and
shops for metalworking, woodworking,
electrical work and storage, Koenig said. “It
needs a lot of work.”
Derecktor is moving quickly. Two local
people have been hired to work on marketing
and administration. Two more from
its Dania Beach offices are working on
permitting. The company intends to hire a
local person who has taught welding and
will be able to teach on the job. Eventually,
the company will be offering apprenticeships
to students in skilled trades programs
at IRSC.
A 150-foot sailboat, just three years old,
has already been in to have work done
on its rigging by a contractor in a deal
arranged through Derecktor. “It was really
exciting to see this already happening,”
Koenig said.
CREATING OPPORTUNITIES
Fort Pierce can grow into a destination
for ships from all over the world in need of
maintenance, repair and overhaul, he said.
“No other yard on the east coast of the
U.S. has the unique attributes that Fort
Pierce has. The largest sailing yachts have
direct access with no overhead obstructions,
the channel and turning basin have
deep water. “
“We went into this with the idea of
creating a high level of economic activity,”
said County Administrator Howard Tipton.
“We were trying to create opportunities
for Fort Pierce to be on the worldwide map
for job creation and maintenance, repair
and overhaul of mega yachts.”
Payne added, “Mega yachts are highly
visible on the world stage.”
The agreement with Derecktor relieves
the county of having to provide matching
money for any grants obtained for the port
work, as well as relieving the county of having
to operate and maintain the port. The
company has also agreed to move its headquarters
from Dania Beach to Fort Pierce
within three years. And, the company will
be responsible for any environmental
issues rising out of operations and carry a
$10-million pollution liability policy.
The county is going to get millions of
dollars of guaranteed revenue from the
lease agreement as well as additional revenue
conditioned upon Derecktor’s sales
success.
The first lease payment of $250,000 is
due in July. From the second through the
10th year, the shipyard will pay $1.391
million annually, followed by $1.364 million
in years 11-30. When the company
earns $40 million in gross sales, the county
gets an additional $200,000; $50 million
gives the county $300,000 while $60 million
results in $400,000 to the county.
Even before Derecktor was approved
in April, Fort Pierce Yacht and Ship, the
local company that was not chosen by
the county to operate the port mega
yacht facility, hit the ground running and
is already working on mega yachts on its
five-acre parcel at the port. One acre of
that land fronts on the water. The managing
partner in the company, Buddy Haack,
tried to negotiate a sale of the working
waterfront terminal with its former owners
in 2016 while he was working on mega
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