A good day, says Front Street Shipyard President JB Turner, is when he's working on “some kind of fun project with a good group of people. Everything goes well, there are no stumbling blocks and the employees are not unhappy.”By that definition, Turner's days as the managing partner of the six-acre shipyard on Belfast's waterfront have been decidedly “good.”
In last year’s Mainebiz “outlook” issue, Front Street Shipyard President JB Turner said the company had big projects underway for 2020, but he saw some warning signs that a decline in the lobster industry could have an impact on business.
Little did he or anyone else know what was ahead in 2020.
“We were fortunate that the pandemic pushed people outdoors and boating is certainly a good way to social distance. Many large yachts came to Maine this summer albeit later than normal. July was quiet, but by August the big boats had figured out the various rules and came to Maine. While we had fewer transients because of the quarantine guidelines, we did see a steady stream of work through the summer and well into the fall,” Turner says.