Devastating loss due to Hurricane Ian prompts new design solution
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla., Oct. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — When Hurricane Ian made landfall in Fort Myers, Florida, early projections had led many owners to delay getting their boats to a safer location, while others simply had nowhere to go. With winds topping 150 mph, Ian toppled and tossed boats around as if they were toys. Photos of thousands of destroyed boats are being shared on social media sites and in the news. Now, with losses expected to top billions of dollars, with many boat owners uninsured, there is great interest in a better way to protect their assets.
Pierce 1 Marina, a fully-automated dry-stack boat storage facility planned to be constructed along the waterfront in Fort Pierce, Fla., known as Fisherman’s Wharf, will be engineered to withstand a Category 5 hurricane. The developer, Christopher Shelli, is passionate about creating a better and safer way to store boats.
“As a boat owner, I am sick to my stomach looking at the photos of the devastation left by Hurricane Ian,” he begins. “I know a lot of boat owners in Florida are unable to afford or obtain insurance for their boats, for a variety of reasons, one being the lack of safe storage during a hurricane.
“During approaching storms, many of these owners have to make detailed plans to try to get their boats to safety, either trailering them somewhere and hoping the storm doesn’t veer off course as they often do, or trying to beat the storm by taking their boat through the locks to get to the other coast. These storms are so unpredictable in many ways that there’s always the risk of making the wrong decision.”
Shelli’s newly engineered structure will be designed to store more than 300 boats measuring up to 46′, and the building will likely be the first of its kind anywhere. He also plans to install the most advanced proprietary software to keep operations humming along smoothly.
“I already have dozens of boat owners reaching out to me about this boat storage building,” says Shelli. “A news commentator recently asked, ‘Isn’t there a better way to store and protect these boats?’ My answer is yes, there will be, once this building is complete.”
About Shelli Associates
Shelli Associates, LLC is a finance and development industry with more than 40 years’ experience in financing billions of dollars of major projects throughout the United States and internationally. Shelli Associates has worked with clientele providing financial recommendations, assistance in obtaining loans for large scale commercial projects throughout the country, and managing contracts and development projects. Learn more about Shelli Associates at www.ShelliAssociates.com.
