At Carousel Marina, A New Generation Takes the Helm

Jul 27

When Boothbay Harbor’s Carousel Marina came up for sale in 2022, Jax van der Veen's family saw more than a business opportunity. They saw a chance to keep another piece of Boothbay Harbor from becoming part of a growing corporate portfolio.

"It was really important to the previous owner that it stayed family owned," Jax said. "That's something no one in Boothbay Harbor wanted to see change."

Today, Jax oversees the day-to-day marina operations while her husband manages the family's dock construction company. Together, they've expanded the business beyond slips and moorings, adding a marina market, rebuilding the docks, and creating year-round work for young tradespeople from the Boothbay region.

The marina employs local high school and college students on the docks each summer, many returning year after year. The family also purchased housing for seasonal employees, recognizing that workforce housing has become one of the biggest challenges facing Maine's hospitality industry.

"We want people to feel like they belong when they come here," Jax said. "We're a family business, and we want people to feel like they're part of our family."

That commitment extends well beyond the marina.

Jax also helped create Carousel Marina's annual tuna tournament, which raises money for Boothbay Harbor's commercial fishing community. Proceeds support scholarships for local students pursuing marine careers and provide emergency financial assistance to families who lose loved ones at sea.

As the tournament has grown, so has its mission.

"We wanted this to support the fishing community: not just through prize money, but through every other aspect of what they do."

For Jax, the investment is deeply personal.

She spent summers sailing in Boothbay Harbor, competed nationally as a junior sailor, attended Georgetown University on a pre-law track, and expected she'd eventually return to Maine decades later. Then the pandemic brought her home during her senior year.

She never left.

"I always knew I wanted to live here," she said. "I just didn't think it would happen this early."

Now she's helping shape the harbor she grew up loving, one where locally owned businesses still define the waterfront, neighbors know one another, and visitors leave already planning their next trip back.

What They're Famous For
Carousel Marina is known for its full-service marina, waterfront market, annual tuna tournament, and the red-and-white awning that's become a familiar landmark for boaters entering Boothbay Harbor.