YORK– The signs in the window at Dodd RV & Marine now say “Coming Soon” as opposed to a marquee sign that read “Opening Spring 2022.”
“There’s a little challenge on getting boats right now because of covid,” owner Jamie Dodd recently said of the change.
The new target date is August 1 for the opening of the new business at 6314 and 6326 George Washington Memorial Highway. The 8-acre site includes a 10,816-square foot building. The property used to be home to a car dealership. It is just down the road and on the opposite side of the highway from Dodd RV, the business Jamie Dodd and his family have owned and operated since 1956. Jamie Dodd’s father, George, first started Dodd RV in Portsmouth.
Dodd said he leased the land last year for boat sales and bought it this year. Currently, there are no plans to add more buildings to the site. However, the extra time has afforded him the opportunity to update and remodel the existing building.
“We’re restoring the whole inside of the building,” he said. “Everything is getting replaced.”
The theme will blend the old business with the new one.
“Our RV company is 66 years old, and that property is over 60 years old,” he said. “So, we’re kind of tying the two together on the inside with 60 years of recreation.”
Dodd RV & Marine will sell new and pre-owned boats,and offer RV and boat services. While the business is expected to be open in late summer, a grand opening won’t be held until spring of 2023.
“We just don’t have the inventory to do anything (big) right now,” he said, adding that springtime also offers better weather for an outdoor event.