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Officials at the Bird Key Yacht Club, which has a long and notable history in the Sarasota area, faced some significant issues in 2013.
Like many social membership organizations across the region, membership was in decline. And some members who remained had grown somewhat apathetic about the club and its future.
Despite the obstacles, club officials decided to re-invest in the facility to draw in new members, particularly baby boomers on the younger end of their generation. The Bird Key Yacht Club traces its history, and location, to the New Edzell Castle, the first mansion in Sarasota built with electric lights, steam heat and hot and cold running water. The yacht club was built on that site in 1959.
The result of that decision is a new marina, a state-of-the-art facility that includes 780 linear feet of new seawall; 48 new slips; a duel fuel system for both diesel and gas; Wi-Fi, cable TV, and security systems; and a double-kayak lift that's unique in the region. The $2.5 million project was completed in October.
“We had to bring something new to the table,” says Brian McCarthy, a club member and volunteer who helped oversee the marina project. “We had to be innovative.”
Bird Key Yacht Club executives also began to reposition the club's image and brand. “There is a misconception that you have to have a boat and live on Bird Key to be a member here,” incoming Bird Key Yacht Club Commodore Charles Wilson tells Coffee Talk. “And that's not true.”
Turns out only 30% of members own boats and fewer than half live on Bird Key, a community between downtown Sarasota and St. Armands Circle. So the club also launched a program to reach out to those potential members — people who seek to socialize through sports and fitness activities that don't involve an anchor. That includes new bocce ball courts adjacent to the Olympic sized pool and Har-Tru tennis courts, in addition to six pickle ball courts coming soon.
The changes have already led to some tangible results. This past June, for example, the club added 20 members. In June 2015, says Wilson, the club added one new membership.
The decline in membership and interest in the club, adds Wilson, “was a wake up call for everybody. We had to respond by providing more of what people need.”
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