The Mission Bay Yacht Club (MBYC) won a 25-year lease agreement July 17 in a unanimous vote by the San Diego City Council ahead of the lease expiration on July 31. The yacht club has agreed to construction improvements at a cost of $2.32 million over several years. The annual rent will increase from $277,455 to $299,207, and the rent will be adjusted every year. The yacht club was founded in 1927 to conduct small boat races in Mission Bay, but it has grown tremendously and secured a 50-year lease in 1961. The MBYC operates boat storage, parking facilities and organizes sailboat activities for its members and guests at Mission Bay. The lessee’s volunteers provide boating experience for youth with Voices for Children, an at-risk youth through the YMCA, as well as for the Inner City Youth Games and to physically challenged people. The yacht club provides boats and equipment for more than 100 regattas and races annually. The MBYC has agreed to demolish the front gatehouse and will rebuild the club’s entrance in 2013 with a new aluminum gate and opening mechanism, and will repair and replace existing car and boat parking areas in 2013. The yacht club will also install new fencing around the property in 2015, according to the 35-page lease. The Mission Bay Yacht Club is located at 1215 El Carmel Place, occupying 6.14 acres of land and 5.68 acres of water. The city’s Land Use & Housing Committee voted 4-0 to approve the negotiations in March 2011.