New marina and entertainment complex planned in Northeast Philadelphia 

A proposed development, known as One River Marina, would bring a full-service marina and an entertainment complex featuring restaurants, a pool and headquarters for the Quaker City Yacht Club to a six-acre parcel of land just north of the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge in Northeast Philadelphia.

This venture is one of the latest in a series of developments that have reshaped access to Philadelphia’s waterfront in recent years, among them the Delaware River Trail, the reopening of Cherry Street Pier and the ongoing redevelopment of Penn’s Landing.

Dana and Ron Russikoff, founders of Rodan Enterprises LLC, are spearheading the One River Marina project. The Russikoffs are the founders of SureShade, a retractable sunshade product line for boats, which they sold in 2019.

“We had the opportunity to acquire the land where Quaker City Yacht Club is currently situated,” Dana Russikoff said. “Having been in the boating industry for 15 years, and having been boaters for 30 years, we have a vision for a first-class, world-class marina destination.” 

Russikoff estimates the project will cost $40 million. Rodan Enterprises is seeking private investors and raising public funds for the project. She said the land designated for the project is in a qualified federal opportunity zone, which offers investors tax breaks. 

“The purpose of the opportunity zones is to spur economic development and revitalization in underserved areas,” Russikoff said. “That will facilitate our funding efforts.” 

The Russikoffs are also looking to apply for public funds through the Boating Infrastructure Grant (BIG) and Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP), which are offered by Pennsylvania.

Plans call for the marina to be a draw for boaters on the Delaware and a gateway to the Tacony and Mayfair neighborhoods of Philadelphia. 

“We’ll have different restaurant concepts and venues that will be open to the public right on the waterfront with beautiful views of the river and the Philadelphia skyline,” Russikoff said. “It’ll be a nice feature for the community to come and enjoy.”

The six-acre plot is now home to a parking lot, boat storage and the Quaker City Yacht Club’s clubhouse.

The Russikoffs plan to optimize the space by replacing the parking lot with a parking garage and constructing a multilevel boat-storage facility that will make room for the other planned developments.

The project will be completed in two phases.

The first will be the in-water development phase, and will include the construction of a new bulkhead, docks, slips and storage for fuel and boats. The second will be the upland phase, and focus on the entertainment complex.

Rodan Enterprises has signed S.T. Hudson as the engineering firm for the project.

Russikoff said that securing the required permits for phase one may take a year. Construction is slated to begin in the late fall of 2025.

“We’re hoping to be able to have [the marina] up and running by the summer of 2026,” Russikoff said. “We’re targeting that summer season because it’s the country’s 250th anniversary and all eyes will be on Philadelphia.”