Hornblower Group, a San Francisco-based ferry operator, announced it has taken over the entire 17-acre Bridgeport Boatworks shipyard on the Bridgeport waterfront, after occupying only half of a 50,000-square-foot building on the property since 2021.
Bridgeport Boatworks left the property, at 731 Seaview Ave., in January, said Timothy O’Brien, senior vice president of ferries and concessions operations. Bridgeport Boatworks was founded on the site in 2018, according to the company.
O’Brien said Hornblower brought about 10 employees to the site when it started leasing half of the building in 2021 and plans to keep the 60 Bridgeport Boatworks employees. Workers include fitters, technical engineers, project managers and administrative personnel.
He said Hornblower has made some capital investments in the property but would not say how much. He said Hornblower is in talks with Bridgeport-based developer RCI Group, the property owner, about expanding and upgrading the facility. The property contains 15 acres of outdoor space that has Marine Travel Lifts capable of hauling vessels up to 700 tons and a 220-foot service dock.
“They have a great vision that we really believe in, which is to make Steelpointe Shipyard a one-stop maritime shop for all types of vessel owners, and we really want to support that,” O’Brien said. “We are actively looking for other other types of vendors and support services to be able to deliver those services, and we do intend to work with RCI to bring those types of businesses to the site over time.”
He said Hornblower’s takeover of the property will also result in more jobs coming to the site, but he could not say how many.
Hornblower said the shipyard will provide services in six divisions: marine construction, propulsion, management, consulting, services and yachts.
The facility will carry out new construction and simultaneously perform scheduled maintenance, emergency repairs and vessel overhauls, the company said.
Hornblower Group in 2021 entered into a long-term lease agreement with RCI, which is developing a 55-acre Steelpoint Harbor mixed-use development on an adjacent 55-acre parcel.
In 2019, Bridgeport-based developer RCI Group built a 50,000-square-foot shipyard building on a 40-acre parcel to create marine service provider Bridgeport Boatworks. Hornblower entered into a long-term lease agreement with RCI in 2021 that included investing $8 million in an expansion of the facility.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect new information from Hornblower Group.
