It’s Labor Day, and time to celebrate the folks who make the working waterfront work! Despite the ongoing pressure from waterfront condo developers, there are still spaces along the shoreline where marine professionals can practice their trade to service your boats. Boatyards, riggers, sailmakers, divers, welders, woodworkers, marine electronics services and many more tradespeople who have built and maintained both recreational and commercial vessels are doing their best to hang on to some of the vanishing space along the shorelines.

In the good news/bad news department, we heard from Southern California master craftsman Wayne Ettel, of the Maritime Preservation Trust, who is well known for some of the very best wooden boat restorations on the West Coast, including the schooner Mayan. The bad news is that the Maritime Preservation Trust has been evicted from its shop in the Port of Los Angeles; Wayne is having to move his waterfront business. Along with his eviction the Port of Los Angeles has impounded two classic boats in his care, including the 1930 Burgess-designed Rose of Sharon and the Herreshoff-designed Fisher Island 31 Bagatelle.

The good news is that Wayne has found space in the old Stephens Brothers Boat Builders building in Stockton and is in the process of setting up the new shop there. Wayne is both a master woodworker and a passionate proponent of preserving our historical maritime heritage. Below is a video of building the new shop in Stockton.

Preserving the old wooden ships and even providing facilities and shoreside space for the modern marine trades has become more difficult with the rising expense of real estate and municipal indifference to the marine industry. Most waterfront municipalities appear more interested in building tourist destinations like Pier 39, or office towers and condos, rather than supporting the marine industry. Though it’s not a big industry, it is the one that supports the ability of all Californians to access the state’s amazing bays, harbors and coastline.

The modern marine trades span everything from hi-tech carbon foils, hulls and spars to the preservation of the sailing ships of the past. The June wooden boat shows are showcases for the great preservation work done by boat owners and boatyards up and down the coast. The Sausalito Boat Show, coming up September 19–21, is a chance to meet some of the Bay Area’s modern marine service organizations and view the latest boats for sale. Additionally, there are many programs such as Spaulding Marine’s Boatworks 101 Apprenticeships program, the Working Waterfront Coalition on Mare Island, and Cal Maritime in Vallejo, that are training the next generation of marine tradespeople.

On this Labor Day, we hope you are out celebrating all the hard work you’ve put into your own boat or work that has been done by the marine tradespeople up and down the coast, by going for a sail. Along with all the workers, you and your boat deserve a break.