Frank's Marina on Belton Lake,
where manager says business is booming.
This time of year is normally a busy time for businesses on Belton
Lake, but this year has been especially busy.
Frank's Marina manager
Russ Wright said he had to turn away a customer looking for a place to
keep his boat Thursday.
Many people are coming in from out
of town to take advantage of less traffic out on the lake.
" I have a lot of people that are renting slips out here that are
from Austin, Georgetown and from surrounding areas," he said.
Slips,
or a parking spot for boats, have become extra hard to come by this
year, because of business coming in from the Austin area.
Wright
said it all started last year when many lakes started to dry up.
"I
hate that it had to happen that lakes go so low in the Highland Lake
area last year, but it really helped us out," he said.
Visitors are also spending more on
gas, alcohol and soda.
Wright said he has noticed many people have decided to make the
drive out to Belton Lake to avoid the traffic in the water.
"I had a
boat on Lake Travis for awhile and on the weekends it was really
crowded, and you really had to watch where you were going," he said.
"Right here, our lake is big and it's wide open."
He said those
who have frequented the lake and the marina in the past are noticing the
difference.
"We have a very small parking lot, and people are
going 'Wow, we have to park way up the hill and come down here,'" he
said. "And on the weekends, it's nuts out here, it's wild."
In
addition, Wright said more people are spending money while out on the
lake. Wright said businesses have seen an increase in gas, soda and beer
sales.
"The economy has picked up considerably, so people are
more likely to come out and fill up a $200 gallon tank and spend the
whole day on the lake, as opposed to last year when budgets were a lot
tighter," Wright said.
During the off-season, Wright said they
usually sell between 300 to 400 gallons of gas a week. Lately, that has
gone up to between 1,600 and 2,000 gallons a week.
Restaurants on Belton Lake are
also seeing more business.
It’s not just business on the marina that is picking up, either.
Those at the Dead Fish Grill said they have noticed a spike in numbers.
"The
lake levels in Austin are definitely more vulnerable than our lake, it
stays a little more constant," restaurant manager Jeff Chupik said.
"Ours does fluctuate, but it's not as bad as Lake Travis, for example."
Since they took over in 2005, Chupik said the business has been
growing.
"Business has certainly picked up," he said. "We opened
up right before the recession, so our business has increased
tremendously."
The location, overlooking the lake, doesn’t hurt
either.
"A lot of people, they go out and drive and ride their
motorcycle on the weekend," he said. "And we're a great destination to
stop."
As Wright put it, the secret about Belton Lake is out.
