A home away from home
Lakewood Yacht Club and its surrounding property are considered home or home away from home for many of our members. Interestingly, Tejas Indians, pirates, ‘wayward’ boys, cattle ranchers, and even the first astronauts have also called it home. The Club has grown from a powerboat-only Club with a maximum of 125 members to more than 500 powerboaters, sailors, and non-boaters. Many consider LYC one of the best yacht clubs in the world. Below are some of the reasons why.
UNIVERSAL RECOGNITION
In February of 2020, the Club was presented with the U.S. Sailing One-Design Award for demonstrating administrative excellence, fleet growth, creative programming, regatta support, and member contributions. LYC hosted the RS21 North American Championships in 2020 and was selected to host the 2020 Optimist Team Trials. The Club has been named one of the nation's Top 10 Yacht Clubs by the Robb Report. Our Club hosts various regattas each year, including the Harvest Moon Regatta®, the largest offshore port to port race on the Gulf Coast. Our youth sailing program develops kids ages 7 to 18 into accomplished sailors, some of whom become U.S. and World Champions. Lakewood also hosts the annual Keel & Wheels Concours D' Elegance, nationally acclaimed as the largest classic car and vintage wooden boat show in the United States. Each year, the show welcomes approximately 200 cars and 100 boats while drawing thousands of participants and spectators from all over the U.S. and Europe.
Lakewood is financially sound and takes pride in not only maintaining the 38-acre property, clubhouse and marina, but routinely invests in capital improvements for our members’ enjoyment. We have beautifully landscaped grounds, including a 22,000 square foot clubhouse, a dining room, a bar, a lounge, a game room for LYC youth, and four meeting rooms that can accommodate 30-300 guests. Members frequent our pool and pool grill bar and are anxiously awaiting the completion of our two-story, covered, multi-purpose, pavilion. The tennis courts were resurfaced last year with the addition of pickleball courts, and we have a club pro that offers classes for all ages and skill levels. The LYC marina and has been a recipient of the Clean Marina Certification, can accommodate over 530 vessels in and out of the water, has four covered sheds, a fuel dock, state of the art peristaltic pump-out facility, a fish cleaning station, and a youth sailing classroom. The Club recently purchased a fleet of RS21 keelboats for members to use, as well.
CALIBER OF STAFF AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
Lakewood’s staff members are dedicated to making every member experience an enjoyable one. Our immediate past General Manager helmed the Club for 43 years and still holds a significant role at the Club. Several employees have an impressive 30+ years of tenure. The Club rewards top performers. Seven employees have been promoted within the past three years, and professional development and continuing education are encouraged. Lakewood’s staff holds membership to various professional organizations, including, but not limited to, CMAA, NCA, ACF, MATT, PCO, PMCA, ACCP, AMT, AMI, and CLMA. Our youth sailing coaches are world-renowned and often selected to coach at the national and international levels. On several occasions, our Club was recognized by several of the professional organizations listed above for various social media campaigns and creative ideas during the COVID-19 situation.
Club traditions are essential to our members. Our Annual Blessing of the Fleet and Commodore’s Ball are two of the most highly anticipated events, and our monthly Member Mixers are always well attended. Events like these are the ones in which members introduce their friends, neighbors and business associates to the LYC Community. Our membership grew by 10% in 2019, with 64% of those joining by way of member referral. Our Growth & Retention Committee is one of the largest and active Club committees, many of which also serve on the new-member ambassador committee that helps prospective members meet and get to know potential sponsors. Many of our members and committees donate to various philanthropic endeavors. For example, our Harvest Moon Regatta® Committee regularly donates proceeds to the Judy’s Mission To End Ovarian Cancer. HMR also gave $22,638 to the City of Port Aransas to help it rebuild after Hurricane Harvey. Each year, close to 300 member volunteers help host Keels & Wheels, which has donated almost $2M to Today’s Harbor for Children. Two local chambers of commerce reap the benefit of many service hours from our members and staff. Toys for Tots is another worthy recipient of members’ donations each year. Our members also give generously to LYC staff during times of need. They donated to those in need after Hurricane Harvey and then established an employee care fund that raised over $80k for staff members who lost income during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lakewood has a 12-member board of elected directors that works alongside the flag officers and management team to govern the Club. They meet each month and hold two membership meetings each year to allow our voting members to participate in elections and receive an update on the Club's state and its financial position.
GOVERNANCE AND PRUDENT FISCAL MANAGEMENT
LYC takes club governance seriously. The board members serve staggered three-year terms to preserve some history and simultaneously add fresh insights. A five-year plan is in place to provide an outline and guidance for future leaders. At the last planning session, the membership was surveyed, and focus groups identified 17 major projects to focus on over the next few years. Several have already been completed or are well underway, all without the need to assess the membership. A 12-boat keelboat fleet was purchased to give members a sought-after amenity. The fleet is also meant to accommodate younger members who are building careers and families that want team and match racing as well as social activity without the cost of acquiring, storing, and maintaining a boat. Another big project that is almost complete is our two-story, covered poolside pavilion, which will provide another picturesque spot to socialize and enjoy a meal or cocktail. Last year, the Club invested in a new software system that replaced six of eight major computer systems. The change has increased efficiency for staff and helps make for a more enjoyable experience for the members. The Club prides itself on investing in the latest technology to serve members and staff. In the past two years, more than $50k has been spent to provide better WI-FI access throughout the Club’s grounds, monitors have been installed in the Clubhouse to better communicate with members, and gaming systems and accessories were recently added to the Kids’ Club.
Lakewood has always been nimble in times of necessity. LYC has complied with all state and county COVID-19 guidelines, including setting up sanitizing stations around the Club, encouraging social distancing, and requiring masks in the Clubhouse. LYC has also exceeded the minimum requirements by installing hospital-grade ultraviolet lighting in the HVAC system and several no-touch appliances. We’ve also hired sanitation specialists to continually clean and sanitize high-touch surfaces. The Club adapts to changing technology by updating systems and software to maintain efficiency and meet or exceed the industry standards. The new members-only app gives them instant access to make reservations, read club news, or look up another member. Our keelboat fleet offers an Uber-style pay to play structure that has become popular among younger members. Our Club is planning a $2M rebuild of our oldest shed to accommodate boats of different sizes and provide lifts for larger, center consoles, a product not readily available in the market even though these boats have become increasingly popular in recent years. As mentioned previously, the Club operates on a five-year strategic plan that allows for easier identification of changing needs.
OVERALL EXPERIENCE
With every visit to the Club, Lakewood members experience dedicated staff, many of which are long-time employees. The service team takes pride in remembering names, favorites, drinks, and special requests. Our new POS system pulls up the member profiles and photos to help identify new members or those who don't visit as often. We often use our electronic sign located at the Club's entrance to wish members' Happy Anniversary or Birthday or to welcome a members' special guest. We operate on an open-door policy where members are welcome to bring up ideas or concerns which the staff take very seriously and address promptly. LYC also considers all of its members, no matter the age or activity level, when deciding upon Club functions or events. If there's an adult event scheduled, a kids' activity is also planned. Our Tennis & Pickleball lessons are open to all ages. Youth sailing caters to ages 7-18, and we have a keelboat fleet to give them something to grow into, as well as for adult members to use for racing or social sailing. Staff members illustrated nimbleness during the COVID-19 pandemic and served members while following the strict guidelines. The Club has a talented pastry chef that makes delicious and beautiful desserts for members to order. Our Harbor Office staff members stay up to date on continuing education and are involved in several state and local marine associations that help them better serve our boating members. They hold Hurricane Seminars each year to help local boaters prepare for potential storms. Our deckhands are available to assist boaters at a moment's notice. LYC members also do a lot of work around the Club, though they don't call it 'work.' We have close to 30 committees composed of member volunteers who share interests and enjoy activities that benefit the Club and simultaneously allow them to socialize with their friends.
