Maine has another jewel in her coastal crown now that Lyman-Morse’s renovated waterfront facilities on Camden harbor are open for business. Purchased in 2015, the buildings all underwent a significant (in some cases, near total) renovation following a fire in 2020. The facilities opened last summer just in time for the Camden Classics Cup, presented by Lyman-Morse. Since 2022, new tenants have joined the waterfront space and construction was finalized. Today there is a mix of restaurants and retail, in addition to Lyman-Morse’s Camden-based operations that include carpentry, electronics, and mechanical work, and their brand-new rigging shop, the facilities represent the culmination a long-held goal of Lyman-Morse CEO Drew Lyman.
Visiting yachtsmen can reserve a mooring or slip and take advantage of the 33,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility that features luxurious amenities such as a comfortable lounge area, high-speed Wi-Fi, well-appointed private showers, restrooms, laundry, and a ship’s store.
“The whole project represents a goal of mine—it’s a working waterfront,” Drew said. “It’s not all revolving around industrial warehouse sheds. We’ve modernized the facilities, added in a couple of restaurants and some retail space, and now you’ve got this great mix. It’s a real community kind of area.”
But for Drew, and for Camden, these facilities are more than just a fancy new rigging shop or another restaurant. Lyman-Morse’s Camden yard is all about bringing life back to the waterfront. “We’re adding to the working waterfront by combining different industries,” Drew said. “If we put condos there it would have been awful for the harbor. That’s the key—the working waterfront should be a term that’s not just fishing boats and yachts, it’s all things that feed off the beauty of a harbor.”
In addition to Lyman-Morse’s full boat service operations and marina, the new facilities are home to the Salt Wharf restaurant, Barren’s Distillery + Restaurant, the Whistling Whale Coffee Bar, and Paper Plane Cocktail Lounge on the food and beverage side, Motifs, a specialty store featuring men’s and women’s clothing and home décor, and the Crew Quarter’s boutique lodging accommodations offering short or long-term stays.