Jon Urban and his family have purchased the former Lighthouse Marina, now known as Mickey’s Marina, in Craryville, N.Y. with plans to reopen an on-site bar and restaurant. Urban and his investment partners bought the 1.6-acre boat club for $2.3 million, including $700,000 for the business, according to real estate agent John Barbato of Berkshire Property Agents, who represented the seller, Dominick Sinisi. Urban and his family have owned Copake Country Club, also in Craryville, for the last 16 years.
Sixteen years after acquiring the Copake Country Club in Columbia County, Jon Urban and his family have purchased the former Lighthouse Marina with plans to reopen an on-site bar and restaurant, Albany Business Review reported.
Located in Craryville, N.Y. on Copake Lake, 15 miles from Hudson and 4 miles from the Massachusetts border, Urban and his investment partners bought the 1.6-acre boat club for $2.3 million, including $700,000 for the business, according to real estate agent John Barbato of Berkshire Property Agents, who represented the seller, Dominick Sinisi.
The buyers purchased the business under the name Urban Mauri Marine LLC and were represented by Austin Urban, an agent with Copake Lake Realty Corp. and son of Jon Urban, Albany Business Review reported. The transaction was completed Sept. 21 and details became public after the deed was filed with the Columbia County clerk’s office last week.
The motivation to purchase the marina was fueled by the same force that prompted Jon Urban and longtime friend Ross Mauri to purchase the 18-hole Copake Country Club in 2006, Albany Business Review reported. When the golf course hit the market, the Urban family did not want to see it shut down and redeveloped as homes, condominiums or apartments.
Their reaction was the same when they heard the marina was on the market, Albany Business Review reported. It took them about five weeks to put an agreement together.
“It all happened so quickly,” Austin Urban said.
To keep the marina business running, the new owners partnered with Nichols Marine of Albany to manage the boat service, repairs and winter storage business, Albany Business Review reported. Historically, the marina has rented its 48 boat slips seasonally at a rate of $2,500 apiece.
The marina name also has changed to Mickey’s Marina, a tribute to former Copake Lake-area businessman and seaplane operator Michael Braunstein, who died in 2013, Albany Business Review reported.
In addition to reopening the restaurant and bar, the Urban family will generate revenue renting out a three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment on the property called The Captain’s Quarters.
The Urban family, who originally is from the Poughkeepsie area, has been in the Copake Lake community for 30 years, Albany Business Review reported. Besides owning the golf course, the business partners also operate The Greens Restaurant and wedding venue at the country club in addition to renting out a converted three-bedroom barn and the Creekside, a three-bedroom home across from Copake Lake.
Now that the acquisition has closed, the Urbans plan to take their time coming up with a business plan that makes sense for the property, Albany Business Review reported. They have not yet picked a theme for the restaurant nor have they decided whether it will be seasonal or operate year-round.
“The marina had always been a staple for the community,” Jon Urban said. “We never expected to find ourselves in the golf course business. And we never expected to find ourselves in the marina business.”
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