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While the Matanuska-Susitna Borough tries to find a way to get its innovative $78 million ferry Susitna into operation, it sits unused at a Ketchikan dock at a cost of $1.4 million a year.
Now, some members of the Juneau legislative delegation and others are wondering why the boat the public paid for can’t be used in the Alaska Marine Highway System.
“Every time I go to Ketchikan and see that poor ferry just sitting there, I think there ought to be some way to utilize it,” said Sen. Dennis Egan, D-Juneau.
The AMHS fleet is mostly older vessels, but it also has some newer, albeit problem-plagued fast ferries. Egan said he wasn’t suggesting a specific run for the 195-foot Susitna, but said it might be able to play a variety of roles.
“Hey, it’s not an ocean-going ship, but it sure can travel the Inside Passage,” he said, and might be used in Prince William Sound as well.
Egan and other members of the Juneau delegation recently met with Mike Neussl, deputy commissioner for marine operations with the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities, to discuss the possibility.
At a Marine Transportation Advisory Board meeting last week in Skagway, Juneau resident Chip Thoma made a similar suggestion, saying the AMHS staff ought to develop a report on whether it was possible for the state to use the Susitna, and what the costs might be.
“I think that’s a real opportunity for the Marine Highways to at least develop a paper to see if there are any opportunities there,” he said.
Neussl said bringing the Susitna into the AMHS fleet presented a number of potential problems, including training crews for the specialized vessel, and figuring out how to get its unique ramps to match Alaska ports’ own ramps and docks.
Complicating the issue is that somebody else owns it, and the state can’t afford to invest substantial sums in reconfiguring docks or additional crew training for a temporary ferry.
“It’s really not our decision how or when that vessel gets used,” Neussl said.
Mat-Su Borough spokeswoman Patty Sullivan said the borough has considered multiple options for use of the Susitna until it can get dock facilities built on both sides of Knik Arm and it can be put into regular service.
She said the borough probably wouldn’t rule out use by the state ferry system in the interim.
“We do need to find a use for it,” she said.
At a recent meeting, she said, a borough port commission member suggested the possibility of using the Susitna to expand the Alaska Marine Highway System.
“If the state had it, they’d run it from Homer to Kodiak, nobody runs from Homer, Kenai, Anchorage, Tyonek. That’s where this boat’s going to shine,” said David Cruz, the longest serving port commissioner and a ferry advocate.
One option the borough is now considering is using its available money to build a pedestrian-only dock at Port MacKenzie, which could later be expanded to a vehicle dock when additional money becomes available.
Building the pedestrian dock would give the borough a place to store the Susitna, but that would still cost more than continuing to store it in Ketchikan, the assembly was told.
Sullivan said she rode the Susitna on a trial run earlier this year and was thrilled by how well it handled.
“It’s a fabulous ship,” she said.
The Susitna is already painted the same blue as the AMHS fleet, it was noted at the MTAB meeting.
State officials appeared reluctant to try to use the Susitna, while not ruling it out entirely.
“It’s just not that easy,” Neussl said. “We could find ourselves doing an awful lot of work and using an awful lot of staff time, and it may just go back to its original owners and its original intended purpose.”
The board was also warned the unique vessel would likely require some specific U.S. Coast Guard approvals for passenger transport as well, and it was not clear how long it would take to obtain them.
The idea if taking the Susitna into the state ferry system resulted in some interesting board discussion, but no strong support for using the Susitna.
“I’m not an advocate for adopting that orphan,” said MTAB member Robert Venables of Haines.
Egan is in Ketchikan today for a Southeast Conference meeting. The Susitna was built there at Alaska Ship & Drydock, and remains there waiting for the Mat-Su Borough to take possession of it.
“It’s an incredible ship,” Egan said. “Seventy-eight million dollars and it’s just sitting there.”
• Contact reporter Pat Forgey at 523-2250 or at patrick.forgey@juneauempire.com.
Comments (22)
Add commentIt does seem a waste. Why on
It does seem a waste. Why on earth did they build a vessel that they dont have the infrastructure to use? Oh, yeah, because it wasnt their money. Put it to use doing something.
Change the name first!
Since Ted Stevens name is already on almost all bloated federal projects in the state;for a change, this ferry should be the M/V Sarah!!
If Chip Thoma is for it, I
If Chip Thoma is for it, I say evaluate very carefully.
If Chip Thoma is for it, I
If Chip Thoma is for it, I say evaluate very carefully.
I don't get it - the public
I don't get it - the public (you and me) PAID for it - but it belongs to someone else?!?!?!? That's not right....
The People's Vessel?
From the ADN: "The cost to create the prototype has been about $78 million, counting early design and model testing. Still, as borough officials note, the Navy is paying most of the bills. Much of the money came through earmarks wedged into the Department of Defense budget by then-U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, the late Alaska political powerhouse.
"The Mat-Su Borough and really the Cook Inlet region were given a tremendous gift through this ship," said Elizabeth Gray, assistant borough manager. "We got an $80 million ship we wouldn't have gotten otherwise."
Read more: http://www.adn.com/2011/05/07/1850915/mat-su-ferry-floating-sports-car.h...
Our taxes pay for things all the time that individual Americans fund but don't have access to. Why should it be any different in this case?
Welcome to the state of
Welcome to the state of Alaska.
Thanks for the clarification,
Thanks for the clarification, Spiff. That does shed a different light on the subject.
Strange Choice
I do find it strange that the Mat-Su was gifted with a vessel for which they have no current use. It's been clear that SE Alaska has needed (and still needs) new ferries for some time. I'm guessing someone really wanted to build this cool new vessel and just used the Mat-Su as an excuse to get it built. But maybe it will start a new trend and we'll get some "shovel-ready" projects in building more of these vessels and new ramps all over SE. Hmmm....
Sell it to the Kensington mine!
With gold at its current high, this picture looks to be the ideal vessel for Cascade Point. Look at the photo its got a mining dump truck on it even.
I'm with Kpawsuh....
.....on this one. Why DID they build a boat they didn't have a use for? That seems beyond dumb. If Mat-Su is paying the $1.4 million storage fee to the state, I say let it sit and keep collecting the rent. It's Mat-Su's problem for being so short sighted.
Imagine how many "useful" projects there are like this in all 50 states combined. If we could just stop hanging stuff like this on appropriations bills like so many Christmas ornaments, the budget would probably balance itself.
I doubt the Mat-Su is paying,
I doubt the Mat-Su is paying, swimmer, so it's more federal tax dollars footing that bill. The article on the ADN site is indepth and might make more than one person's head explode when they read it. For $78 million, one has to wonder if they could have built a light rail or train to Anchorage on the Glenn Hwy - at least that could have been used immediately.
Put it to Work
The vessel was paid for by the public and is completed. No sense in yammering about what should have been or whether the policy behind construction made sense. The only sensible thing to do is get this vessel into service in a way that will benefit the public.
The vessel doesn't necessarily have to have a dock and ramps for loading and unloading. Deployment, at least temporarily, in Prince William Sound or perhaps Southeast Alaska to serve small out-ports like Excursion Inlet and other places currently without decent ferry service or without any ferry service at all makes sense.
This is an asset owned by the public that should be used, not sitting idle. Dennis Egan and other folks calling for the State of Alaska to at least consider useful options is a smart move and shows leadership.
Pork Barrel Politics
All you Stevens supporters shouldnt be critical of the ferry. This is just a small example of the billions that he removed from the pockets of US taxpayers and spread out over Alaska to maintain his power base. If the Navy is wasting money on this goofy project, just imagine how many billions could be cut out of the federal budget. This country needs a dose of fiscal responsibility if we are to survive. Vote for Ron Paul.
Reality
Yes, Ted Stevens was a proponent of constructing the M/V Susitna in Alaska. But what really drove the acquisition of the vessel was so that the United States Navy could evaluate the concept of having a vessel with a movable deck that could serve as a connector to move heavy cargo from large ships positioned offshore to shores without logistical support. The US Marine Corps and other services are in the process of reconfiguring how to put marines, soldiers and sailors ashore without using ports and in places where there is little or no armed opposition. There are not going to be any more Tarawa or Inchon landings by US forces in the future. This is why the US Navy funded the M/V Susitna as a proof of concept vessel. Instead of the large dump truck in the picture, envision a Stryker vehicle or a tank if the vessel was built in the up-scaled version.
Having paid for the vessel, the taxpayers ought to see the vessel put into service. The vessel doesn't need docks and might actually be fine serving places like Excursion Inlet, Elfin Cove, Hawk Inlet, Pelican and various mine sites around Southeast Alaska or perhaps some of the other tiny communities in Price William Sound that would probably love to have regular ferry service, even if was just every other week or even once a month.
Dennis, I know you are a
Dennis, I know you are a Democrat like Tony but I had always given you more credit for smarts. This thing looks like it was designed and built by the same boob that brought us those useless “Fast Ferries”. It is a one of a kind protype (just like those fast ferries) that has never been tested in our waters and most certainly was not designed or built for the conditions that exist in southeast.
Wait, Wait a minute! I see your reasoning now, it has those same strange totally custom foreign-built one of a kind engines as the fast ferries do. Heck, if we can get it cheap It would be a great “Parts Boat”. We could tie it up next to Nimbus right behind the new capitol building that Bruce wants to build.
MacArthur Fellow
Obviously AH HA should apply to be a MacArthur Fellow.
Fellows In Law? Why not?
No Joe, It’s just that I know something about Ferries that you seem to either have forgotten or never learned.
FERRIES ARE HOLES IN THE WATER THAT TAX MONEY IS POURED INTO. The bigger the ferry the bigger the hole and the more money required.
If we have to have another ferry, perhaps, just perhaps, this one time could we be smart about it? Let’s get one that is of a proven traditional design so that before it starts costing millions of dollars we know that it will be useable and not something that “might actually be fine”.
Genius Award Goes to AH HA
No, not for the name. For brilliant analysis.
I think the discussion here is whether or not to deploy an orphaned vessel for a couple years instead of letting it sit idle at the dock in Ketchikan.
In the meantime, the State of Alaska is pursuing construction of new Alaska Class vessels thanks to adult leadership on the part of Dennis Egan, Senator Stedman and other legislators that address genuine needs and are not prone to rants, etc.
Sorry Joe...
I should have realized that you knew all about the "hole in the water". As a MEBA lobbyist you learned long ago that as long as money goes down the hole you are going to get your share....
You are the guy who proposed a road from Juneau to Haines and skagway with a ferry on both ends right?
Careful how you answer Joe. it's only gonna get worse.
AH HA ha ha ha ha
Well, as a matter of fact, I tend to use care in crafting any response I elect to post. One of the reasons I excercise care is because I use my name instead of some flaky made up moniker.
Yes, I did propose construction of a road-ferry, road-ferry alternative at one point. My reasoning for doing so was related to facts like genuine traffic numbers, consideration of environmental areas as well as cost and funding for the proposal. In addition, the proposal I made was based on legal considerations.
Had the Department of Transportation given actual consideration to the proposal (it was essentially a sensible variation on the so-called 2B option in the EIS prepared by the State of Alaska), there would have been a better than even chance that the project would have advanced. Instead, the State of Alaska elected to go for a proposal that had obvious legal and practical problems. The result was predictable: nothing was accomplished other than a waste of funds on planning and litigation that could have been avoided.
I am not, as a matter of fact, a "lobbyist" but who really cares? This is, after all, the modern world where facts, reason and logic are in eclipse. Call it the Post-Enlightenment World. My guess is you fit right in to this brave new world and are comfortable making stuff up from the anonymous position you inhabit.
In the end, it is hard to imagine this dialogue getting any better. We've pretty much reached the end of line where facts, logic, reason and value added ideas have no place, at least in the context of what was once called civic dialogue. I suppose this is the way of the modern world but it struck me then and still strikes me as inefficient, divisive and silly.
Sayonara.
If it were a hovercraft as
If it were a hovercraft as originally plan there would be a lot use for it including for what it was planned, but it now is an abortion. Who is responsible for changing the plans? The designer?
The Valley screwed up their prison. A bridge that makes no sense because almost all will not use it. And a ferry that is not what was planned and cannot be used. A three time loser. Just MatSu blowing State money
Then there is selection the Union oil building as the new LIO building only to find out the Chairman own the property accross the street. Was Ben Stevens Correct?
this is pathetic
build a vessel for buck's deluxe and not use it unreal!! If I handled my investments like that! my wife would surely divorce me in a heart beet!!!