Florida Keys News - Key West Citizen
Monday, April 13, 2009
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Vandenberg underway to Key West
Local updates on progress to be broadcast
BY MANDY MILES Citizen Staff
mmiles@keysnews.com

The 522-foot Gen. Hoyt S, Vandenberg is underway and making way, embarking on its final voyage from Norfolk to Key West, where the former military ship will be scuttled as an artificial reef.

Crews cut the Vandenberg's anchors around 11 a.m. Sunday in Norfolk, and the ship is expected to arrive in Key West sometime between late Thursday and Saturday, depending on weather and sea conditions, Key West City Commissioner Bill Verge said on Sunday.

Five tugboats guided the mothballed ship through downtown Norfolk and successfully squeezed her through a narrow railroad bridge opening, said Joe Weatherby, who initiated the reef project more than 10 years ago, and watched the ship leave Norfolk on Sunday.

Once the ship safely clears Norfolk harbor and is in open water, only one tugboat will remain to pull the ship down the Eastern seaboard.

That tug will provide twice-daily updates about its location and sea conditions, Verge said.

The National Weather Service Key West forecast office will broadcast these reports, and Verge hopes to have them available on the city's Web site at www.keywestcity.com.

A team of reef experts will sink the ship about five miles off Key West, creating a new habitat for marine life, an underwater classroom and a fishing, diving and snorkeling site.

The ship will be anchored at East Quay Wall at Truman Waterfront upon arrival in Key West, but must be on the ocean floor by the start of hurricane season on June 1.

mbolen@keysnews.com

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Artificial Reef Better Ideas?

Submitted on Tue, 04/14/2009 - 6:04pm by Igotmine
I never bought the idea of this method for an artificial reef. I agree we NEED to do something to sustain and rebuild what reef is left but is this the most cost efficient way to go? The water resources is what keeps people coming back but for all those million's of dollars, wasn't there a better option than sinking one big ship?

Just a waste of taxpayer money

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 4:48pm
I bet the city of key west wish they had there money back! But its to late and the Mayor and Comissioners that were all for it will see there re-elections go down whith the ship!!

Drop in the bucket

Submitted on Tue, 04/14/2009 - 9:54am by Keylargokey.com
compared to the takings lawsuits on the horizon....2 million will be chump change in comparision.

Such a massive waste of money!!!

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 11:00am by KW M
Couldn't we, maybe, fix the sidewalks and roads...clean up the beaches...the list goes on and on. But no, let's spend a ton of cash on something that only a few folks are interested in. Well done, Morgan.

vandenberg

Submitted on Sat, 04/18/2009 - 1:25am
Just for the record...when scheduling a vacation I don't believe I've ever heard anyone ask "Where can we go for spring break that has the best sidewalks?" The Vandenberg will generate revenue for this island at a much needed time!

While I supported the Vandenberg 10 yrs ago

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 1:27pm
I stopped supporting it when the price kept going up and up and up and when it became a means of employment for Joe Willoughby, not a project. I can't help but think that the reason this thing dragged on for 11 or more years is because of a few people making this a LIVING, not a project for the Keys.

Willoughby?

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 3:23pm
You must be very close with Mr. "Willoughby" to have such insight.

Excuse me - that's Weatherby

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 5:25pm by *.*
Joe's been gone from KW so long, we have all forgotten his name.

I made the original post above and

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 5:24pm
it's not a secret in the least. Everyone knows - at least most anyone in the snorkel and dive business here know's Joe and knows the way he's 'worked' this thing for his own benefit all these years. It's left a bad taste in the mouths of most of the dive operators all these years, too. VERY bad taste.

Nope. It's common knowledge.

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 5:19pm by *.*
Ask anyone in the Keys diving community. They'll tell you all about it.

On the Verge

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 8:22am

Let's hope the SS Boondoggle sinks as quickly as Verge's next bid for city commission

.

Vandenberg

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 2:02pm
As a frequent Key West visitor, I'm extremely excited about this historic event. I praise your local commission for making this happen, because it is going to have such an important economic impact on your community, let alone the environmental relief for your suffering coral reefs. In case you're not familiar with the positive impacts the Spiegel Grove had on Key Largo, and what the Oriskany had on Pensacola, please do your research before bashing these intelligent leaders.

You've been holding your breath too long

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 4:00pm

I guess you haven't been to Key Largo or Pensacola recently

The only impact this will have on Key West will be on the First State Bank/Spotswood's bottom line when the Key West taxpayers pay off the loan their bank made to cover the latest $1 Million + fundraising shortfall for this boondoggle

.

I don't think anyone is questioning their intelligence

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 5:26pm by *.*
We're questioning the monstrous waste and the fact that it took 11 years for it to happen. If I'm not mistaken, the Navy originally offered to sink it for free but oh no! That wouldn't have given a fat income to some of the promoters for 11 years, now would it?

If it'd been sunk then, it would've been at that time, the biggest artificial reef and would've helped dive companies when they needed it the most. Now they're barely hanging on, hoping it will make a difference.

Weatherby is certainly not a leader . . . though he has managed to make a nice living from this for all these years and there are others. Oh, and by the way, the Big Ship Wrecks people hired Willoughby and now pay him and - they're the ones who have made a lot of money on this deal.

Speaking of the 'leaders' you mention: DiGennaro was a hero of this project and as the last of the old Gang of Three, he's been relieved of his powers thanks to this type of thing. McPherson pushed for it because he's DiGennaro's 'little buddy' and of course, we know what kind of financial genius HE is. At least Verge has taken up the administrative and managerial end to finish up the 'deal' and he was not involved in the original mess-up.

So before a visitor begins to try to chastise us about our 'take' on something like this, perhaps you'd want to do a little research yourself and find exactly who has profited all these years while the dive shops were starving, and when the taxpayers had to pick up the slack for the hugely escalated costs. Remember: It's OUR money that is sinking this thing, not yours.

it is not your money...

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 10:28pm
...it is OURS...says the government

RE: Intelligence

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 10:04pm
I know this project has taken a long time, but I didn't know a lot of the details you previously mentioned...so thank you for that bit of information. When this project came close to collapsing, I was hoping that Miami was going to snag the ship, but the more I thought about it, I'm glad that you guys ended up with it, especially after the time and money you have spent on it. I think in the long run, you guys will benefit tremendously. Only time will tell though. Us Miami residents just suffered the largest waste of tax payer money in now having to build the new Marlins stadium.

and...ya wonder how much waste there will be

Submitted on Tue, 04/14/2009 - 8:55am by *.*
on that little project? By the time they have crooked contractors, crooked subcontractors, you might well have another mess on your hands up there like the Key West airport. Thanks for your note. It is hard to know the 'inner workings' of something like this unless you live here.

Sounds like the publicity managers are here.

Submitted on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 3:09pm
Sounds like the publicity managers are here. Very few will reap benefits from the S.S. Boondoggle.

Rather Than-

Submitted on Tue, 04/14/2009 - 2:48pm
I'd rather put my money in the Vandy than pay the legal bill on the Duck Tours....Let's go Divin!!!

Well, the City did that to you

Submitted on Tue, 04/14/2009 - 5:53pm by *.*
When they discriminated against the Duck Tours and chose to do line the pockets of Swift & Co, they doomed us all to pay the bill for their bubba-ism. And since the Vandenberg was to have been sunk 10 yrs ago at a minimal cost, it makes the cost to the taxpayers to sink it now really hard to swallow. More taxpayer money to line the pockets of a few persons.
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