Dolores is adding a new boat-rental business.
Doc's Outdoor Sports and Recreation is renting the old Forest Service yard from Dolores on the east end of town on Colorado 145.
Owner Stan Folsom plans to offer a variety of boats, including a large party boat with a water slide, four, 24-foot pontoon boats, six trolling fishing boats, and three water ski boats.
He operated a marina on Vallecito Reservoir for years, but closed it down due to a limited boating season on the mountain lake.
Now he has his sights on McPhee Reservoir. For the past two weeks, Folsom has been dismantling his marina, loading it up on semis and delivering the massive structure to store at his new Dolores location.
"The community has been very supportive, it gives me chills," he said. "The mayor's been helping for days unloading the marina and equipment."
Lakeside Dolores has been waiting for a marina since the old one burned down in 2000 at the McPhee boat ramp.
The Forest Service is preparing a bid package to attract a new marina operator. Part of the contract proposal will require the successful bidder to install a $300,000 breakwater that is sitting on shore.
The marina bid is expected to be opened to the public by spring, and Folsom is ready.
"I'm looking forward to the opportunity to open a marina at McPhee," Folsom said. "I have the passion and experience. I'll be ready to put my marina back together in hopes of getting the contract."
The competitive bid process could attract other interested players, including McPhee Boat Rentals in Dolores, and corporate giant Aramark that runs concessionaires at Mesa Verde National Park and Lake Powell.
"We've made the marina a priority to improve access and services on McPhee," said Tom Rice, a recreation planner for the Forest Service. "We won't know the interest until the bid goes out to the public."
Folsom is also seeking a Forest Service permit to launch rental boats on the lake. The Forest Service manages the shores and recreation of McPhee Reservoir. They currently only offer launch permit to McPhee Boat Rentals.
"Right now I'm allowed to rent boats out from my new location on the highway, but I need the permit to do launch from the boat ramps," he said. "I don't see it as competition, but more providing more options for the community and visitors."
Folsom recently relocated to Rico, where he has refurbished the Stanley Rico Motel, once owned by his grandfather.
Folsom's publicist, Cierra Walters, says it's about time the state's second-largest body of water got a marina.
"We're hoping this gets pushed through," she said. "People plan their vacations around water, and explore nearby towns. They are more likely to stay if they can store a boat at a marina."
jmimiaga@cortezjournal.com
