Grant Crowley
“I stopped taking a salary a long time ago so our numbers would look good. We’ve been surviving because we’re convenient.
“People come to store their boats with us because we’re close to the city. It’s less fuel. It’s not worth going to Wisconsin or Michigan to pay $1,500 less for storage and maintenance. But Senate Bill 9 changes that. If they extend the state sales tax, that would turn into a $2,500 difference and we’d lose a lot of work. It would drive business across the Illinois border.
“The state needs to stop taxing things that move … boats are highly mobile.
“The sad thing about it is that the rich guys with multimillion-dollar yachts can easily winter their boats in Kenosha, Racine, Michigan City or Macatawa.
“It’s the blue-collar guys who store their boats here so that they can work on them close to home, the guys who love doing it – that’s who will pay. Not to mention the jobs that we’ll be forced to cut.”
Grant Crowley
Crowley’s Yacht Yard
Chicago, Illinois
Have a story to share?
Tell us how a state or local policy affects your life.
If we decide to feature your story, one of our writers will reach out to you directly.