With the boating season fast approaching Jamestown Marina has a presence at the boat shows, is surveying its members and introducing a new General Manager, Corey LeBlanc.

LeBlanc says he has spent his life on the water.

"My father was a lobsterman, and still is," LeBlanc said.

He grew up near Brunswick Maine, but it was his dissatisfaction with college in the mountains of Colorado that sealed his fate as a waterman.

LeBlanc said he took a summer job at a marina on Lake Powell, and remained there over the years until the economy prompted a move here.

Starting out as a bartender, he worked his way through the boat repair and maintenance division to become the marina manager there but saw the economic downturn having a deep impact on the marina in the desert.

He said the economic impact of the recession started early out west and even with the past influx of European tourists as the dollar fell that region is still seeing problems that he expects will last.

"That lake is way down due to drought," LeBlanc said. "This lake is just lower because of the repairs and that won't last for ever."

Overall he said he saw his opportunities here on Lake Cumberland as being better.

"It is great here." LeBlanc said. He added that there is a lot in the way of services that the Lake Powell marina offered that he is looking at bringing to Jamestown Marina.

"We had a VIP-1 and VIP-2 service," he said.

He said boaters would simply walk off the boat, and all the incidentals like parking it in a slip, fueling, cleaning and checking out the mechanics would be done for the boater. Another service is pre-stocking boat's larders and prepping boats for use before the boaters even arrive.

LeBlanc said he has sent a survey to all the slip customers asking if those are services they would be interested in.

With gas prices down and expected to stay that way LeBlanc said he is looking forward to a good year on Lake Cumberland.