Having been involved in the construction, management and development of Dun Laoghaire Marina since 2001 Hal Bleakley is retiring from his position as General Manager of the Marina and Managing Director of Marina Marketing and Management Ltd / Karnool Ltd. Paal Janson has been appointed to succeed him with immediate effect. Hal will be ensuring a smooth handover from now for a period of two or three months.
A Chartered Engineer with extensive experience in the airline service industry, his other qualifications, as a keen sailor in the Dublin Bay Mermaid class and as a past Commodore of Dublin Bay Sailing Club and Committee member of the Royal St George Yacht club ensured a steady hand on the helm.
When he took up the position in January 2001 the Marina, was a collection of driven piles unconnected to any marina furniture. The office administration building was an outline of foundations. Using his mobile ‘phone from his car on site for three months he co-ordinated with the various contractors and suppliers until the Marina opened on 17th March 2001 with a 24/7 operation.
He recruited a further seven staff to provide operational, security and customer services to berth holders and visitors. Porta-cabin office and shower/toilet facilities catered for the initial basic comforts. The office and facilities building became fully operational in May 2001, catering for a 275 berth capacity. Additional berths were added virtually every year up to 2006. Hal was responsible for many alterations to the basic design layout and was also responsible for many innovations –one which he is particularly proud of is the Facilities Barge containing 4 cabins fitted out with shower and toilet facilities. In 2006 the last extension brought the capacity to 820 with some 725 of these under contract.
Under his stewardship in 2008 Dun Laoghaire Marina was awarded the Environmental ISO 14001 for its management policies, In the same year Dun Laoghaire Marina also became the first marina in the Republic of Ireland to be awarded the Yacht Harbour Association’s Five Gold Anchor grading.
While retiring from his active role within the Marina he hopes to continue he long association with sailing by continuing to assist in the race management programme of Dublin Bay Sailing Club.- he may have raised the anchor within the Marina organisation but he will continue to be associated with DBSC and Dun Laoghaire Marine leisure activities. He has been the catalyst in kick-starting a co-ordinated approach to providing a specific and unified sailing and boating series of courses for young disabled in the Dublin area . – he has no intention of “sailing off into the sunset “ (not quite yet anyway).
