Thumbnail photo: A few RVs linger in a nearly-deserted Bayside RV Park in this photo from June 2023. | By Jessica Cejnar Andrews After hearing a pitch from two Orange County-based developers who want to revitalize the Crescent City Harbor’s RV parks, public commenters resurrected memories of a previous investor whose grand design never materialized. Many are still bitter over the Harbor District’s experience with Alex Lemus, Henry Geiger told the new developers, Sean McGraw and Scott Lawhon following their proposal on June 25. Geiger said he liked their proposal, which includes improving deteriorated pavement, broken electrical outlets and outdated restrooms at Bayside and Redwood Harbor Village RV parks, but wished they had made their pitch to the Harbor District seven or eight years ago. “The problem is you’re coming in behind an individual who made promises in the past,” Geiger told McGraw and Lawhon. “I have no doubt you’re committed, but I also heard the same commitment from the previous individual who promised the world and stuck [the Harbor District] with some big bills.” McGraw, a realtor who has sold properties in Southern California, Oklahoma and Georgia, told commissioners that he spent much of his young life at Dana Point Harbor fishing and boating. He said he has experience fishing for swordfish and attended sailing camp for six weeks out of the summer as a kid. When he first visited the Crescent City Harbor, McGraw said he fell in love with the community and the people. “Dana Point used to be similar to this in the 70s,” he said. “But with growth and people moving in from different places, it just changed it. It’s not as friendly as it used to be. It used to be inviting and warm like Crescent City.” On that first visit back in September, McGraw said he found his way to Bayside RV Park and was surprised at its dilapidated state. He said his parents would send him pictures of “beautiful RV parks all over the country.” Bayside looked dilapidated and terrible, he said. McGraw’s September walk took him from the new Port O’ Pints location, through Bayside, past the two-story Boat House restaurant and into the nearly deserted Redwood Harbor Village. Telling commissioners that he built a subdivision in Georgia that now has 36 homes on it and is flourishing, McGraw said he thinks he can make Bayside and Redwood Harbor Village similarly shine. “I feel this harbor needs someone to put their arms around it and make it the best harbor on the West Coast,” he said. “And I also understand that this harbor is the only one on the West Coast that’s actually tsunami proof. Now, that’s exciting.” Lawhon said he and McGraw were planning to invest more than $1.2 million into Bayside and Redwood Harbor Village. They pointed to a community survey they conducted saying the respondents supported the upgrades with the goal of attracting “higher-end visitors” through enhanced landscaping, greater security and amenities. Though their goal is to attract visitors with newer larger motorhomes, they plan to reserve a percentage of the sites at Bayside RV Park for long-term tenants with monthly leases. This, they said, provides the Harbor District with a consistent income. “We’re not looking to come in and take over. We want to partner,” Lawhon said. “There are a lot of luxury RV parks out there. This could actually be that. You’re sitting on a gold mine.” To make that gold mine sustainable, according to Lawhon, the pavement at both parks need resurfacing. They also discussed changing the parks’ layout, planting native “low-maintenance” plants for landscaping, and building “cabin-like RV rentals” for those who don’t have motorhomes. Other amenities will include wifi, laundry, fire pits and walking trails. McGraw and Lawhon plan to provide concierge services to guests, which can help with booking fishing trips or even going on a supermarket run. Lawhon, who also has a history with the Dana Point Harbor, also talked about the endeavor’s proposed educational programs. “We have a lot of ideas about sponsoring junior sailing programs [and] fishing programs for children,” said Lawhon, adding that he was also active in the yacht club at Dana Point Harbor. “If we get children involved and excited about the harbor it leads to a lifelong love of the area.” Lawhon and McGraw also had a plan for boosting the sustainability of their endeavor. They would ask local vendors such as Local Boys Surf Shop to sell their products at an RV park store. There would be other local products available as well. Lawhon said they envision partnerships with Port O’ Pints and Rumiano Cheese Co. He said he and McGraw are also pursuing federal grants and public and private partnerships. “We’re looking at offering you a year-round revenue source with stability with a long-term lease, dynamic pricing,” Lawhon said, referring to the Crescent City Harbor Districts 2018-19 strategic plan. “And some of the upgrades we’re talking about are really going to enhance the profitability of the park [so] that enhances the value of your asset. You own it. It helps you to grow as well.” Like Geiger, Harbor Commissioner Rick Shepherd said McGraw and Lawhon’s proposal will be a tough sell to him and his colleagues because of their experience with Lemus. After he helped the Crescent City Harbor District install a system of solar panel carports in 2019, Lemus answered a request for proposals to redevelop the harbor in 2020 and in 2021 presented a plan to revitalize Bayside and Redwood Harbor Village. Lemus’s plan included upgrading RV park infrastructure and landscaping as well as purchasing Airstream trailers and cabins for short-term stays. He planned on installing electric vehicle charging stations at the old Spotty’s Car Wash near Fisherman’s Restaurant as well as building a co-op near the Harbor District office to allow local fishermen to sell their catch to local businesses. Lemus’s proposal also included making provisions for the 86 tenants who lived at Bayside. But by June 2023 communications between Lemus and the Crescent City Harbor District had broken down. By December 2023, both parties had agreed that Lemus would terminate the ground leases he held at Bayside, Redwood Harbor Village and a third RV park he had established out of RHV’s overflow lot, South Beach RV Resorts. Lemus also agreed to pay the Harbor District $100,000. In an interview with the Wild Rivers Outpost on Oct. 24, 2023, Lemus described the situation as a “difference of opinion on the direction of the harbor and the development of the harbor.” At the Harbor District meeting last week, Shepherd said in order for McGraw and Lawhon’s proposal to succeed both sides will have to reach a “reciprocating deal” that will make everyone happy, including the community. “You’re going to have to explain to our local people, to sell it to them as well as you’re going to be able to sell it to us,” he said. “I don’t think we have the capabilities here in the harbor to be able to do it ourselves. We’re going to need somebody outside to come in.” Kevin Hendrick, chair of the Del Norte County Democratic Party and frequent meeting attendee, said he also remembers Lemus’s presentations and had hoped commissioners would be cautious about this one. Hendrick said that he had read through the proposal from McGraw and Lawhon and didn’t see or hear about a promise of money for the harbor. “If you’re considering any kind of a proposal, you’d better be thinking about how you’re going to bring money into this harbor,” he said, adding that the proposal should have included an estimate of revenue in addition to their potential expenses. “They could make money, but if you’re not making money and if you don’t know [if] you’re going to make money, you don’t have the time to spend going through this again with another agent.” In response to the public’s concerns, Commissioner John Evans said the developers’ plans are “very preliminary.” He assured them that the Harbor District will be careful moving forward and suggested setting up a public workshop to answer questions about their proposal.