Advisory Committee backs MURF guardrails for water ferry/taxi, adds permit specifics for council review

The Advisory Committee reviewed a MURF discussion draft and agreed to send town council a set of guardrails for any future water ferry or taxi service. The MURF draft recommended that "all permitted operators should follow all posted speed zones," provide adequate parking, consider a seasonal schedule for initial startup, and require necessary federal, state, county or municipal licensing.

Committee members unanimously supported those guardrails and amended the document to include additional permit guidelines the town can enforce: limits on the maximum number of operator licenses, maximum vessel size, required levels of insurance and liability coverage, fees for the right to operate, and restrictions on operating hours and days. A committee member moved to accept MURF’s recommendations with those additions, another seconded, and the committee approved the combined recommendation to forward to council.

Members discussed practical constraints for operators: seasonality that can depress predictable revenue, the need for upland parking and vessel storage during off-season months, and coordination with state and federal authorities (FWC, U.S. Coast Guard) on safety and navigational issues. One member noted that many ferry proposals are privately run and may require subsidy to be viable; committee work focused on the town’s regulatory role rather than operator feasibility.

Curtis Lewig and other members recommended that, before council acts, staff confirm coordination points with FWC and the Coast Guard and that proposed permit language specify minimum insurance and liability coverage. The committee chair said staff will prepare a formal recommendation for presentation to council in August.

The motion was carried by voice vote; the committee will present the written recommendation alongside supporting documents from MURF.