March 29, 2024
Business | Northwest Herald


Business

Crystal Lake Marine Services seeks $85,000 loan from Woodstock for move, expansion

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WOODSTOCK – Crystal Lake Marine Services seeks an $85,000 loan from the city of Woodstock for a move that will quadruple its space and add 15 jobs to the community.

Dave Piersall of Crystal Lake Marine Services operates the company on a 10,000-square-foot facility with four acres of land at 1151 Lake Ave. in Woodstock, and he wants to move to the former Harley-Davidson facility at 2050 S. Eastwood Drive.

The company moved to its existing site in August 2013, but the facility is at full capacity and is growing, Piersall said.

“We have such a congregation of boats we are working on that productivity goes down,” he said. “The other thing is that our storage business has grown exponentially.”

The company stores about 300 boats and recreational vehicles. It also completes repairs on boats, snowmobiles and jet skis. The new facility will have a full RV service center, Piersall said. The proposed added jobs will range from mechanical engineers to a parts manager and administrative and financial personnel, he said.

Piersall is seeking the loan through Woodstock’s Revolving Loan Fund. The Revolving Loan Fund is an economic incentive that allows the city to offer low-interest loans to businesses that want to expand or relocate to Woodstock.

Interest rates start as low as 2 percent with a maximum repayment term of seven years, according to city documents.

“We’re excited about [this] expanding business. [It is] fairly new to our community, but has found Woodstock to be a profitable place to invest. We’re happy to be a part of their growth here in Woodstock,” Economic Development Director Garrett Anderson said.

Piersall said that he plans to change the name of the site to Lake Marine and RV to better incorporate into the Woodstock business community.

“They’ve been fantastic,” he said. “We have always liked Woodstock a lot. When we got through this experience, it endeared us even more. We are rooted.”

The city’s Economic Development Commission recommended the project be taken to the Woodstock City Council for approval. Council members likely will consider the item at their next meeting, at 7 p.m Tuesday at Woodstock City Hall, 121 W. Calhoun St.