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Six feet of snow in Buffalo and other northern climes traditionally has its advantages for Marco.

QUENTIN ROUX / Eagle staff

Forklift driver Hawk Rabess puts another boat to bed for the night at Cedar Bay Yacht Club, which six months ago converted to a private club with storage as well as privileges for members.

Fed up with power outages, digging out and other hassles associated with the dreaded Arctic blasts, people head for the big peninsula, Marco included.

And, they have money to spend.

And, while the more obvious businesses such as resorts, retail and restaurants are direct recipients of this fortuitous cash injection into the local economy, there are other beneficiaries.

One is the Cedar Bay Yacht Club that recently converted to a private club.

With groundbreaking imminent on additions such as a restaurant and new clubhouse, the club has experienced heightened interest courtesy of the up-country freeze of the past couple of weeks.

“We’ve noticed it, definitely,” said membership salesperson Kelsie Welch. “We’ve had lots of inquiries over the past couple of weeks.”

The yacht club, formerly Cedar Bay Marina, changed hands in September of last year and was converted to a private club.

The concept, like a county club, is full-service.

Members simply make an advance call. Their boat is removed from its storage place, cleaned, inspected and placed in the water.

“When you arrive at the club you receive valet service from the parking lot to your boat. Your gear is loaded on your boat along with ice, food and drinks which can be ordered ahead of time from the planned restaurant,” Welch said.

“When boaters return to the club, the engine is flushed and the boat is washed and placed back in the storage facility. This is boating as it should be,” she said.

There is a transferable initiation fee of $77,000, 95 percent of which is refundable should a member opt to leave the club for any reason.

General Manager Scott Hopkins said it’s no secret that the supply of boat storage in Collier County is dwindling, hence the club’s big promotional push at the moment.

In the past few years the county has seen Wiggins Pass Marina, Factory Bay Marina, Turner’s Marina, and Boat Haven Marina disappear; and that is just naming a few. There are several reasons for this trend.

“Permitting for new marinas has become more restrictive, thus limiting the ability to build additional facilities. In the unlikely scenario that a marina is permitted, the county cannot provide the amount of waterfront property necessary to build additional marinas,” Hopkins said.

Furthermore, “Mom and Pop” marina operations are being acquired by developers as they continue to experience increased tax and insurance expenses, he said. As a result of the combined effect of these conditions, equity memberships have seen major increases in popularity.

One taker so far has been part-time resident Bill Cutillo, who described his decision to join the club as a good investment for his future boating style.

Mark Schwab said he joined the club because of its easy access to the Marco River and Gulf of Mexico.

“From my point of view, it also made sense to purchase a dry slip as opposed to renting a space,” Schwab said.

For more information, call 394-9333 or visit the club’s Web site at www.cedarbayyachtclub.com.