In another sign of economic hard times, five owner-captains of sportfishing boats at Mission Bay Sportfishing were served eviction notices and told that the landing that has been serving fishermen for more than 50 years was shutting down.
Four of the five owner-captains confirmed yesterday that KenCal Ownership LLC, which bought the Hyatt Regency Islandia and Islandia Sportfishing last year in a controversial purchase and lease deal with the city of San Diego, gave them written notice on Monday that their boats must be out of the hotel's marina by Nov. 15. Islandia Sportfishing was renamed Mission Bay Sportfishing last year.
“I'm still in shock,” said Gary Abbamonte, owner and operator of the Alexis, a 38-foot charter boat at the landing. “I was told Monday that my services no longer are needed and that Mission Bay Sportfishing no longer will exist. There are five of us here, and none of us is in a very good spot right now.”
The other four boats involved are the Dolphin, owned and operated by Jason Coz; the Dolphin II, owned and operated by Greg Miser; the Dominator, owned and operated by Frank D'Anna; and the Chubasco II, owned and operated by Ernie Prieto. Of the five owner-captains, only Miser could not be reached.
KenCal Ownership LLC officials did not return phone calls yesterday afternoon.
Abbamonte said he and the others have called City Council members to ask for help. They also may seek legal counsel.
“We're checking the lease to see if there is any legal footing for us to fight this,” Abbamonte said.
Prieto said KenCal indicated it wants to convert the docks to get more private boats in the slips.
Coz, of the Dolphin, said he just recently spent money advertising his business in an effort to draw anglers during the fall and winter months.
“I run half-day trips year-round, so this really hurts me,” he said. “I have this boat with a silent partner. I've owned it for seven years and have worked on it for 20. My whole life's work is invested in this boat.”
John Yamate, part-owner of Seaforth Sportfishing, located just down the promenade from Mission Bay Sportfishing, and a competitor, said he was saddened by the news.
“This is a real ugly situation,” Yamate said. “It's not a good thing for these boat owners and not good for the industry at all.”
Yamate said he might be able to accommodate a couple of the boats at Seaforth, but boats like the Dolphin, Dolphin II and Chubasco II run open-party trips that compete with some of the 16 boats at Seaforth Sportfishing. The Dominator ran out of Seaforth last year, but was wooed to Mission Bay Sportfishing by KenCal officials, according to Dominator owner Frank D'Anna.
“We can't take every one of them, but we might be able to make room for one or two,” Yamate said. “We've had some inquiries. We wish them all the best and will do the best we can for them, but we don't have homes for all of them.”
Yamate said Seaforth has a new 40-year lease with the city of San Diego.
Ed Zieralski: (619) 293-1225; ed.zieralski@uniontrib.com
