TREASURE COAST BOATING
BOATING
Pursuit Boats can produce a boat in 21 days and as many as 10 boats
per week leave the plant north of Fort Pierce. Before every boat exits the
sprawling facility, it is tested in a quality control pool. On its way out the
door is the 34-foot offshore OS345.
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cold-molding process the planks are bent without steam.
Located at the end of Sportfishing Boat Row is the only
sailboat manufacturer on the Treasure Coast: Hake Yachts.
For 35 years, Hake’s 25 employees have turned out 25 boats
a year. The three models range from 26 to 46 feet and are
priced from $44,000 to $530,000. “We have a vertically retractable
keel, which no one else has,” says Hake sales manager
Rob Parks. “This allows you to operate in extremely shallow
water but still be able to sail without sacrificing performance.
We have several owners racing our boats and they are winning.
It is a performance hull with nice accommodations.”
Parks says there is no better location for Hake than Stuart.
“We’re in a perfect spot for sailing, with both the Indian and
St. Lucie rivers right here if it is rough offshore,” he says.
“With the inlet right here, we can be offshore in 10 minutes.
The proximity to the (Witham Field) airport is great when
customers fly in. And if we don’t make it, we get it from local
vendors — either from Martin County or Florida.”
Just 25 miles to the north, the vast majority of boats built on
the Treasure Coast are produced within a mile of the St. Lucie
County International Airport north of Fort Pierce.
Since 1983, Pursuit Boats has been producing center-console,
dual-console and sportfishing boats from 18 to 38 feet.
The 200 employees turn out five to 10 boats a week priced
from $35,000 to $500,000.
“St. Lucie County as a whole has a good workforce that
works well for our type of product,” says Pursuit marketing
director David Glenn. “It has really been a tough time for
boat builders and we have done a great job keeping a solid
workforce. It is a direct result of a lack of financing, both
retail and wholesale. We have always had a strong base, and
haven’t had to hire from outside the area. Over the past three
years we have had ups and downs and our business model
has changed.”
But the orders keep coming. “The process and design is
not by chance before the product comes out the back door,”
says Glenn. “I have seen other plants, and we have an exceptional
plant. We can turn out a boat in 21 days.”
Since 1984, Maverick Boat Co.’s 90 employees have produced
more than a dozen boats a week under the names
Maverick, Hewes, Pathfinder and Cobia. From 15 to 29 feet,
the 37 models sell from the mid $20,000s to $130,000. Flats,
bay, center console, walk-around and express boats are all
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