Developer plans to restore McHenry's long-vacant Watertower Marina

A local developer has a big plan for the long-vacant Watertower Marina in McHenry.

Keith Carpenter of KMMK Properties Inc. is in the process of buying the property in hopes of restoring and reopening the facility under the same name.

The marina has been shut down for at least eight years, and its piers are unusable.

Carpenter is demolishing the existing piers this week to make way for
110 larger, steel and concrete docks. He also plans to build a seawall.

Once the marina is up and running, Carpenter plans to offer seasonal slips, drystack and winter boat storage, as well as in-and-out service. He also is looking to convert the on-site showroom into a bar and grill.

The 6.5-acre site at 3112 W. Lincoln St. on the Fox River has a 29,500-square-foot building and a 20,000-square-foot pole barn. Its price is $1.6 million, according to a real estate listing.

Carpenter ultimately plans to build a three-story condominium building on the north side of the property. He has been boating on the Fox River for more than 30 years, and he said he was drawn to the property because of those experiences.

“That place has been sitting there vacant,” Carpenter said. “I always wondered why no one has done anything with it. So I decided to do something with it.”

Demolition of the piers is underway, the seawall could go in later this winter, and the new docks will be installed in the spring, he said.

The city of McHenry has been working to capitalize on its waterway offerings in recent years, and a development such as this could prove to be a boon for the area, City Administrator Derik Morefield said.

“This property is one of [McHenry’s] highest-profile ones. It’s the one I get asked questions about most often,” Morefield said. “People see it whenever they do anything on the river or when they do anything across the river.”

Morefield said he has not seen a lot of valid interest in the property from developers during his seven years with the city.

“We are excited to have anything happen with that site,” Morefield said.

From an economic development standpoint, the Fox River is “huge,” Morefield said.

The city recently approved other projects related to boating and river tourism, including a dredging agreement for Boone Lagoon, a new seawall plan for the area near Walsh Park and the creation of a St. Patrick's Day event – McHenry Shamrocks the Fox – that included dyeing the river green.

The riverwalk project also has made strides in the past year.

“Anything that can provide people a way to start their boating day in McHenry, end their boating day in McHenry or create a reason for people to stop in McHenry is huge,” Morefield said.

Carpenter eventually will need to go before the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council for approval on some aspects of the marina project.