Marmong Point Marina

Written and researched by Bonnie Murdoch.

Marmong Point has long been a special location for marine activities. The suburb used to known as Marmong Cove. Marmong Point and the Marina has changed significantly from its first development. The land for the marina was first leased on the 12th of October 1938 to Arnold Bressenden. He was granted a Special Lease ‘for the purpose of boatshed, slip and boat repairing’. The marina development began on the 19th July 1940.

The marina lease was transferred twice in the 1940s. It went to G. and A. Blumer in 1944. They themselves were boat owners and had a yacht called Wanderer. Harry Bond was the next owner in 1946. He created several structures for the marina, which included a boat shed, slipway, jetty and wharf. He also built his house there, using local materials and carted sawdust from the Marmong sawmill for landfill.

Ian Craig and his wife, who owned Yacht and Marine Services, were the next marina managers. They brought the existing marina constructions and the house in 1968. The Special Lease that Bond had held expired in 1977. Marmong Cove Marina took over the Special Lease from the Craigs on the 25th of June 1982. The 1980s saw Jo Sweeney, the director of the television network NBN, which invested in the marina, and Fred Williams in charge of the marina. Williams used to own property at Marmong Point. Belkin Construction were the next owners with Mick Atkins and Bryn Bell.

The marina expanded rapidly in the 1980s. The environmental proposal in 1984 said there were more people who needed space for their boats because of the population increase in the western side of Lake Macquarie. Visitors had also grown since swing mooring licenses were closed from further issuing in Sydney. Marmong Cove was an established marina and handily '60 nautical miles north of Sydney Harbour' as accredited by the Marmong Point Marina website.

The greater popularity of the marina can be seen in the dock or berth increases. In 1984 there was swing mooring for 35 vessals, marina berths for 29 boats and dry boat storage for 40 vessals. After the expansion, the berths were increased to 160. In 2010, approval was given to present owner Les Belkin to expand the marina again. It was a project planned to run into the millions. 85 new berths were added and 75 existing ones were replaced. The June storm in 2007 impacted on the marina. The fuel wharf was being replaced when the storm hit. Luckily, there was no fuel in the system. Marmong Point Marina has since transformed from its humble beginnings into one of the leading marinas in New South Wales.

Reference

Marmong Cove Marina Pty. Ltd & BSCD Planners 1984, Marmong Cove marina environmental impact statement : proposed marina expansion, Marmong Cove Marina, Marmong Point, N.S.W.

Nilson, Laurie & Leis, Susan & Noble, Rodney & Lake Macquarie (N.S.W.). Council 1985, Lake Macquarie : past and present, Lake Macquarie City Council, [Boolaroo, N.S.W.]

CRONSHAW, D. 2010, 'Approval satisfies demand for berths - Marina will become one of state's largest', Newcastle Herald (Australia), 27 Feb, p. 3 Accessed 15/04/15.

This work by Lake Macquarie City Library is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License