Marina and bar owner remains hopeful after Key Bridge collapse impacted business

(WBFF) — It was two years ago that the Key Bridge collapsed in seconds after being slammed into by the Dali cargo ship.

It was one of those moments those in Maryland remember where they were when they got the news. Especially Alex DelSordo, owner of Anchor Bay East Marina and Hard Yacht Cafe, just a stones throw from the Key Bridge.

“’24 was a rocky time,” he said.

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As luck would have it, DelSordo purchased the boatyard just 11 days before the bridge collapse.

“I’ve cried myself to sleep a bunch of times and asked myself almost everyday in ’25 ‘why did this happen. Why us,'” he said.

Now, two long years later, his business is still recovering.

“We were down 13% just from 2024, which we were down 10% from the year prior to that,” he said. “So we found what I hope is the baseline of operations here at Hard Yacht, but we were massively impacted.”

DelSordo said things weren’t bad at first as the marina welcomed first responders and those working to clear the channel, but eventually that business slowed and many regular customers were no longer making the commute, which had doubled in time.

“March, we were expecting a flurry of activity at the bridge. We were expecting more contractors coming in getting a job done. We expected the federal and state government to work together faster to get things rolling, but that was not the case at all,” he said.

While rebuilding efforts are underway, the cost and timeframe are now expected to be much more than originally estimated.

“Am I mad? Of course I’m furious. I can’t believe we haven’t come to a conclusion yet. We don’t even how much it’s gonna cost and quite frankly we don’t even know how long it’s gonna take,” DelSordo said.

In the meantime, Anchor Bay East Marina and Hard Yacht Café will still be there.

“I’m willing to lose unbelievable amounts of money to keep this place going, because I know that when that bridge is up and running we’re going to be the only game in town,” he said.