Port Townsend to lose car ferry service, possibly near holidays
By Jeff Chew, Peninsula Daily News
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"It could be two to three weeks," Washington State Ferries spokeswoman Hadley Greene said of the Steilacoom II's drydocking.
When the Steilacoom II, which the state leases from Pierce County, will be lifted into dry dock for Coast Guard-required annual maintenance is unknown, Greene said, but it has to be by Dec. 31.
"The vessel is required to go through its Coast Guard inspection," Greene said.
"It has to be done by the end of the year. Pierce [County] is responsible for that. We're working with Pierce County to schedule a date."
State ferries system officials are expected to discuss the passenger-ferry option at the next Port Townsend-Keystone Ferry Partnership committee meeting at 1 p.m. Oct. 21 at the Pope Marine Building, Madison and Water streets at City Dock.
Holiday season
Greene said state ferries officials were aware of the potential impact on the coming holiday season.
"We're trying to avoid the holidays, if possible," she said.
The Steilacoom II's sister vessel owned by Pierce County, the Christine Anderson, was ruled out last summer after test runs between Port Townsend and Keystone showed the vessel's propulsion system was inadequate for operating safely on the route.
"When we did sea trials on the Christine Anderson, the vessel had trouble coming to a stop quickly," Greene said.
The Steilacoom II went into operation on the route in January, and was later coupled with a new Port Townsend-Keystone ferry reservation system successfully used during peak summer season.
The state brought in the vessel after state Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond pulled the 81-year-old Steel Electric ferries serving the route from service last November, citing unsafe corroded and pitted hulls.
That left only passenger ferry service during the holidays last year, which ran between Port Townsend and Whidbey Island and Seattle.
The Snohomish ferry, which was used to take passengers to Seattle — and with a bargain-basement ticket fee proved to be popular during the holiday season — has been sold to the Golden Gate Transit Authority in San Francisco, and will no longer be available to Washington State Ferries.
Private operators
Consequently, Greene said, state ferries will be seeking offers from private passenger-ferry operators to temporarily serve the Port Townsend-Keystone route.
Ferry services such as Port Townsend-based Puget Sound Express and Port Angeles-based Victoria Express will be considered, she said.
"We'll be ready," said Pete Hanke, who co-owns Puget Sound Express with his wife, Sherri.
Puget Sound Express provided temporary service to from Point Hudson to Keystone during the holiday season last year.
Kim Jons, Port Townsend Chamber of Commerce president, acknowledged that Port Townsend businesses would be facing "some very challenging times" in the months ahead.
"Anything Washington State Ferries can do to support transportation issues in our town is appreciated," she said, adding that business owners were already frustrated with limited ferry service to Port Townsend.
"But the ferries need to be maintained and we are very grateful to Pierce County in loaning us the Steilacoom II," Jons said, adding that she wants the vessel returned to Pierce in ship shape.
The 50-car Steilacoom II will likely be used until a new 64-car ferry is built by mid-2010, state ferries officials said.
A contract to build two Island Home-model ferries for the Port Townsend-Keystone route is being advertised.
Work on the first of the two 64-car ferries could start as early as November, depending upon how soon the state awards a contract and construction begins, Greene said.
Bids will be opened Nov. 6.
Greene said state ferries officials expect to take up to 10 days to award the contract, but that the bids would be good for up to 90 days in the event that more time is needed to evaluate them.
The contract proposal calls for a bid on an optional third vessel, but Greene said it had not been determined how the vessel would be used.
Two vessels
Only two vessels would be needed for the Port Townsend-Keystone route to return the run to the service it had before the Steel Electrics were pulled and the route was reduced to one boat.
With two ferries, boats would leave every 45 minutes during peak use.
David Moseley, state deputy Transportation secretary for ferries, has said the agency would do its best to make the bidding process competitive.
The state ferries service advertised this year to build a Steilacoom II-model ferry for the route, but the effort stalled when only one builder, Todd Shipyards, vied for the contract, and its bid came in at $26 million, $9 million higher than state engineer estimates.
The bid was called to expedite construction of a replacement ferry for the Port Townsend-Keystone route.
Port Townsend residents have long opposed plans for another 50-car Steilacoom II-type ferry, wanting instead a larger vessel that can handle more cars and passengers.
Gov. Chris Gregoire, after a visit to downtown Port Townsend businesses earlier this year, agreed after she heard business owners' concerns about the size of the Steilacoom II ferry.
Island Home-model design modifications could save the ferry system money. An $85 million budget remains for the two larger ferries.
The modifications would include no bow doors on the ends of the vessel, and no air conditioning system, which suit New England winters and summers only, ferries officials said.
The original Island Home ferry operates in Massachusetts.
The Island Homes would be large enough to handle commercial distribution trucks, including those hauling kraft paper from Port Townsend Paper Corporation's mill to the company's Canadian box-making plants.
The Steilacoom II can handle only vehicles of 80,000 pounds or less.
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Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
Last modified: October 07. 2008 9:00PM