Saybrook Point Resort & Marina: A Spotlight on Sustainability

Saybrook Point Resort & Marina in Saybrook, Connecticut, was the first marina in the state to be certified as a clean marina back in 2003. That designation was prophetic as the marina has embraced all things green ever since, resulting in it winning the 2023 Marina of the Year Environmental Responsibility Award.

Saybrook is a multigenerational family business like few others having not one, but two families involved in the marina. The Tagliatela family has owned the property for more than 40 years and since 2008, Saybrook Point Marina has been managed first by Abbie McAllister and then by her daughter Kate Mosley.

A Family Business
Managing partner Stephen Tagliatela’s family has deep roots in Saybrook and, as developers and contractors, were drawn by the challenge to bring the Saybrook Point property back to life after it had fallen into disrepair. It was particularly intriguing because the family were avid boaters. “I was six when my family bought a SeaRay and I was hooked. I bought a boat instead of a car when I turned 16,” Tagliatela said.

The facility’s current director of marina operations, Kate Mosley CMM, has been working at marinas since she was 16 and began working there under the manager at that time, who was also her mother. “I grew up living on a boat. My mom ran the office and dad ran the yard. My first job was pumping gas. Boating has always been in my life,” she said. Her family has been in the industry for more than 40 years with Mosley working her way up to her current position.

Now as a second generation of Mosley women to run the property and the only mother-daughter duo to be Certified Marina Managers, Mosley runs with the guiding principle to set the standards for others to follow. A major part of those standards is environmental stewardship, which has been prioritized from ownership to dockhand since the renovation of Saybrook Point began.
Tagliatela explained that the Connecticut River on which the property sits, had a history of pollution which, over time, the state determined to change and has since become a leader in environmental enforcement. “We’re at the mouth of the river and today it looks very much like it did 100 years ago. It’s a very natural habitat with the largest population of osprey, eagles are returning, we see seals, and we even saw dolphins for the first time last year,” he said. Seafood is a big draw, and the property’s restaurant, Fresh Salt, sources all local seafood for its menu.

Saybrook Point is a natural haven, but that’s meant challenges for development. For instance, there is no sewer line and electricity is somewhat scarce. That meant creativity was needed from the time the property underwent renovations. “We’ve always been early adopters and not afraid of technology. We take the time to research and see what the best investment will be. All our innovations have a reasonable rate of return making it even greater to be green,” Tagliatela said.

Onsite Green Technology
With no sewer, an onsite wastewater treatment plant became the only option, and the priority was to create one that was environmentally sound. Multiple designs were submitted to the state until the current one that processes 20,000 gallons of wastewater each day was approved. It’s a single pass sand filter design, where wastewater first goes into a separating tank to separate out solids, then travels through three feet of sand for further cleansing, and finally passes through a UV treatment system that kills pathogens before the water is released into groundwater. Tagliatela worked with the company Geometrics to add a patented process whereby air is added to the sand filter creating an oxygen rich environment where natural microbes can thrive and aid in the destruction of pathogens. It’s an added level of treatment that is not required, but for Tagliatela, was necessary.

Tagliatela also introduced more environmentally sound technology to the onsite cooling tower which uses minimal energy to heat and cool the larger buildings on the property. The pipes that feed into cooling towers are prone to mineral buildup, which needs to be removed periodically. Typically, a chemical treatment is used, but Tagliatela wanted to avoid chemicals and found a system through Dolphin Hytronics that uses soundwaves that travel through the water to break down the minerals. Soundwaves are an environmentally sound alternative to chemical treatment and there’s no need to have trucks deliver chemicals.

Being in a rural area complicates energy usage, so Saybrook relies on a cogeneration plant to provide the resort’s main building with electricity and has installed five solar arrays. Tagliatela said that combined the Saybrook property is about 50% off the grid. The cogeneration plant generates both electrical energy and heat from a motor, which Tagliatela said is about the size of a motor you’d find on a Chevy truck. The plant produces surplus heat in the building that is then used to heat the resort’s pool and the system also turns a 75kW generator. As a bonus, the building is high enough and sturdy, so it is designated as a refuge for the community during storms because of an additional 500 kw generator.

The main functions of the resort are environmentally friendly, but Saybrook takes its embrace of green down to its simple day-to-day operations as well. “Hurricane Sandy resulted in significant damage to our marina’s infrastructure. We took the opportunity to rebuild better – we upgraded our fuel dispensers, replaced our fuel lines, improved our electric supply and pedestals, increased power options on our mega yacht dock with 480v power, and replaced the decking with Ipe. These were all much higher upfront expenses, but we knew that these improvements were worth it when looking to the future,” Mosley said.

The fueling system was upgraded by adding a fuel hose reel further down the dock and installing camlock fittings to extend the reach of the high-speed diesel hose. This allows more boats to fuel directly in their slips. The system is further complemented with double-walled fiberglass fuel tanks and the use of ValvTect fuel specially formulated to increase efficiency in marine engines. The marina also offers free guest bikes and has onsite EV charging stations.

Spreading the Word
In 2006, the resort created a Green Team that is now led by Mosley. “We were green before green was a buzzword. Our team, made up of representatives from all departments and from top level employees down, comes up with different ideas on how we can be greener,” explained Mosley. They have regular beach and marsh clean-ups and offer electronic recycling and clothing drives for staff and the surrounding community. Around the property, grass has mostly been replaced with plantings that require less use of chemicals and water, and Purple Martin houses have been placed to attract the birds that act as excellent natural pest control.

The personnel at Saybrook are proud of their efforts to reduce the resort’s carbon footprint and are happy to show off their accomplishments. They offer “Green Tours” of the property to guests, the public, and to others in the hospitality industry looking to improve their green practices. They also feature their green methods under a sustainability page on the resort website. Mosley said they are also asked to give presentations on their practices to local community groups.

“We’ve had customers come to us because of our environmental awareness. For us, going green is an ongoing journey, not just a check the box and you’re done,” said Tagliatela. Mosley echoed that, “We’re doing this for many reasons. It’s the right thing to do and we want our customers to enjoy being out here. If we don’t have clean water and air, we’re not going to have customers,” she said.

It is that mindset and the extensive effort behind it that caused Saybrook Point Resort & Marina to win the Marina of the Year Environmental Responsibility Award that was presented at the 2023 Docks Expo in Nashville, Tennessee.