http://ipraudio.interlochen.org/Mackinac_Meeting.mp3
It was an emotional council meeting on Mackinac Island last night, even a little angry. Ferry boat companies were invited to explain their proposals for next year, including one proposal to create a monopoly. But there wasn't a lot of new information.
'Unhealthy, Dying System'
Jim Wynn has been in the ferry business since June, when he bought Arnold Transit. Now he wants to be the sole provider of ferry service to Mackinac Island.
He says the business model for the existing ferry companies is broken:
"It's my position, and we've studied this for ten years, that those economics cannot be sustained. Change has to happen," he says.
Wynn is proposing to merge his company with another service, Starline. Tom Pfeiffelman, CEO of Starline, spoke at the meeting to back up Wynn. Pfeiffelman got choked up when he explained why he is willing to merge his company with the Arnold Line. He says the number of visitors to Mackinac Island is down, but his costs are going up.
"I burn 2,500 gallons of fuel a day. It went up $1.50. You figure the math, he says. "How long was that going to last us?
"I was losing about $4,000 dollars a day. No way to gain it back, just going up in smoke. Anybody that tells me this is healthy competition ought to come and see for yourself at the end of the year what we have left. It's the most unhealthy, dying system I know."
Wynn and Pfeiffelman are asking the Island to view ferry service as a public utility and give them the monopoly. Wynn says, with only one service, they can reduce the price of a ticket to the island and be more efficient by running fewer boats.
Not Buying
But Terry Elliot, who works on the Island, says they showed no data to support their claims.
"Nothing is based on economics. When a man tells you they do it to lower ticket prices, and then the next man says lower ticket prices won't bring more people over, and they're going to increase revenue thru efficiency, how you going to increase revenue with less boats running? None of the numbers add up," he says.
Eliot thinks Island officials don't like the Sheplers, and would like to put them out of business. And Shepler's Mackinac Island Ferry would go out of business, if the proposal from Arnold Transit is accepted.
A Plea From The Other Side
Bill Shepler has been outspoken about what's at stake in this, and last night was no exception.
"I'm pleading for my life right now," he said. "I'm pleading for our very existence."
About 120 people came to the meeting. The island's population is less than 600.
The crowd included some officials from nearby towns on the mainland, including Mackinaw City and St. Ignace, who are not happy about what is happening.
The Mayor of Mackinac Island Margaret Doud was less than diplomatic.
"This is the city of Mackinac Island. This is not Mackinaw City," she said in a chaotic point of the meeting.
Mayor Doud says the Island has hired an accountant to analyze the system and measure the economic impact of having one exclusive ferry service. She says the city council won't make a decision for at least a month.