St. Andrews Bay Yacht Club leaders looking towards the future after fire

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - Just less than a week after a fire destroyed the St. Andrews Bay Yacht Club, its leaders are looking toward the future.

The club’s board held a meeting Thursday night to discuss options for what is next. Club Commodore Will Cramer told NewsChannel 7 that the meetings have always been open to club members, but that very few members would typically attend. But he said Thursday night, it was a full house.

Cramer said because the main building of the club was destroyed in the fire, a new building will have to be built. He said in the meantime, the club’s spirit is still alive among its members, and he hopes to start hosting events on location as soon as two weeks. He said board members are looking at different possibilities like bringing in food trucks and setting up tents in the parking lot.

Cramer added that while it is difficult to see the charred building, he knows the club will rebuild.

”Everybody wants it to succeed. Everybody wants to see it build back, to do things that we weren’t able to do before with this facility we had,” Cramer said. “So, we’ll wind up with a much better facility that suits the needs that we have for families that we didn’t necessarily have before.”

Cramer told NewsChannel 7 the process of getting insurance estimates has begun. There is still no word yet on the cause of the fire.

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