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April 10, 2006 -- Vol. 6 Issue 15 Written by Jack R. Simpson (unless otherwise noted), owner of J.R. Simpson & Associates, Inc. and contributing editor to The Waterways Journal.
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 In This Newsletter:
Thought For The Week
Elected office holders who promote the use of eminent domain to take private property and turn it over to other non-governmental entities may get bit at the polls. Editorial Comment From Jack
 Eminent Domain As a result of a Supreme Court decision in 2005, promoters of eminent domain have been scrambling to grab land for developers and to increase tax income for governmental entities. The decision to promote eminent domain may be the downfall for many of those promoters, who are also elected officials. On the morning after municipal elections in Sunset Hills, Mo., it was reported that voters ousted five who had supported that legal mechanism. After the smoke settled, the city’s plans for a $184 million shopping center fell through. But in the city of Clayton, Mo., the voters rejected the anti-eminent domain forces. If I may borrow the expression, “it’s going to be a long, cold winter” before this issue is settled. I think it was an intolerable Supreme Court decision, leaning heavily to business and away from the taxpayers. It does, however, hurt the businesses that are being displaced. The original intent of eminent domain was to make it possible for government to “take” land for a public purpose if necessary - like a school, a public office building, a highway right of way. The Supreme Court decision broadened the danger of the law by allowing government to “take” private land by designating it as blighted and turning it over to private developers in order to enhance the area designated and also to increase tax receipts for that level of local government. In our way of thinking, this is downright stealing. This particular legal mechanism is dangerous. It is a threat in many cities around the nation, and can also be a threat to marine industries located along waterways where private developers want to build condos, or for that matter, in any area where expansion of a marine business has been hampered by environmental laws. No private owners can escape the impact of this unfair law unless local voters do as they did in Sunset Hills. The use of eminent domain should be limited to the purpose for which the law was originally written, and when owners are forced to give up their land, they should be appropriately compensated for it. Granted, there are blighted areas in towns and cities, but the manner of settling the issues should be above board and fair to property owners. To “confiscate” land that is owned by negligent and absentee owners who have not kept property up is one thing. To displace owners who are operating successfully but not quite as successfully as the city dads and moms would hope for, is despicable. As it relates to government, I was amused by an old “Roseanne” program repeat Thursday night. A campaigning politician came to her door to campaign. A very large plant was closing in the town, and lots of companies were laying off workers. The politician said he was going to work hard to bring in new business, to which she replied, “And they will get a tax break, right?” And he responded with a “yes”. Roseanne: “And who is going to pay the taxes that the new companies don’t have to pay? We are, right?” And the politician responded, “Well, right”. Roseanne went on and on and finally drove the guy away, but she followed him to every house he intended to visit. Later when he turned up at the couple’s cycle shop to pitch Dan, he saw Roseanne, turned and ran. That is about what I think of tax incentive financing (TIFs) and how our local politicians get new business to move in while giving them tax breaks for a couple decades. In the meantime, the remaining taxpayers, already hit hard by diminishing wages and lost jobs, get to make up the tax-income difference for the community. Politicians must take us for idiots! Lots of shopping center projects get moldy and die out in about 20 years (we have three of them around us doing that now) and then they start over to help a new developer make money and offer more TIFs. At the risk of being overly redundant (now that is a bromide if I ever produced one) I have reported for years my attendance at a national meeting of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States. The theme of the speaker’s address was that business do not need tax breaks to locate in a town. All they need are good schools, nice parks, in other words, a well-run community with activities for the employees they hire. That was in the 1960s. Now, cities are doling out TIFs like candy, and taxpayers must readily give up a lot of taxes to attract firms for which no guarantees of successful operation are given. We’ve been informed that quite a few towboats are tied up because the owning/operating companies cannot find crews to operate them. What with Coast Guard licensing regulations being what they are, we wonder just how getting enough crews will be accomplished. Not so much in the background is the fact that the life expectancy of river pilots and captains is not so good. As with truck drivers and railroad employees, stress on the job is taking its toll. Perhaps these jobs are not as attractive as they once were. Editor’s Notebook
 Ron Richardson said last week that he had gone to New Albany, Ind., the previous week to photograph the sunken asphalt barge. When he arrived, he found the Mv. Chris shoved in on the New Albany side of the river with 15 loads, waiting to go up through McAlpine Lock. Ron had wanted to talk to the pilot about “that thing” located just aft of the pilothouse. Turns out that he got to jabber with the captain on Channel 16 and found out that the “thing” in question was an ergonomically correct ladder. The captain praised it highly and he said they had not had any falls since its installation. Ron got a picture of the Mv. Chris during his visit.
Capt. Bill Beacom, Sioux City, Iowa, called last week to share a few thoughts about the Inland Waterways Conference he recently attended in Memphis, Tenn. Capt. Bill is a trip pilot when it pleases him, but he is also involved in a broad spectrum of inland waterways issues, particularly those having to do with the Missouri River. Interestingly, he got involved with speakers during one of the sessions and asked about how long it takes now for captains to perform their duties as designated safety officers aboard their vessels. The government had estimated this chore would take about 2.5 hours daily. Some said they had been able to reduce the time to about 30 minutes or so, but Capt. Bill asked how they managed to accomplish it without messing up the captain’s (government assured) scheduled private time for rest. “Or,” he asked, “are they doing it while in the pilothouse?” The response, of course, was no. The bottom line is that the captain still gets it in the neck. This all relates to stress and how it impacts health. Railroaders are now suing railroads, we hear, because stress is damaging their health, and the life expectancy of railroad men (and boat captains) is not very good. One look at the ads in “The Waterways Journal” indicates companies are having a tough time staffing their boats. At least twice in the last week or so, Jan van der Doe has called from Fergus, Ontario, Canada, and we discussed trillions of things. He actually had called about books, but since our ages are close enough that we could have been hatched out of the same nest, we shared ideas on a lot of things. Jan sent along some pictures of boats he took in Holland. We are using them this week in the Photo Center. Jan is retired now, but he used to drive trucks and spent a lot of time in the U.S. He has a fondness for rivers, lakes and riverboats. Mike Rushing, Rushing Marine Service, Jackson, Mo., passed along on April 1 a note that Capt. Everett Johnson has died. We have no details, and don’t know the man. Perhaps some of you do. In case any of you remember Capt. Richard Rodgers, he is now living in Budapest, Hungary, learning the language and doing everything as the Hungarians do. Capt. Richard used to work the boats on the lower Mississippi, and I we have been great friends for more than two decades. After leaving the boats, he went to California, where he was involved in computer work for quite some time, then within the last few weeks found a pad in Budapest. Beats me! But he seems to be enjoying it, and I get frequent reports from him. Steve Campion asked recently if anyone knew where to find web sites that show pictures of towboats in South America. We never heard from anyone - unless I missed the response. If there is anyone among our more than 900 subscribers who can help Steve, just send your suggestions to us for B&B. According to “The Baltimore Daily Record,” the towing vessels Night Hawk and Sharps Island are headed to federal court, and so are a whole passel of owners and operators and the captains. Amtrak filed suit recently because of two “tugboat” collisions with a Susquehanna River railroad bridge on two different days in 2003. (The Susquehanna runs north and south in the vicinity of Harrisburg, Pa.) The suite seeks more than $300,000 in property damage. The Night Hawk, a 74-foot vessel pushing the 350-foot barge Patapsco and its load of stone products, struck the bridge on March 21, 2003. The 81-foot Sharps Island was pushing an unidentified barge when, a day later, it struck the bridge on March 22. Named in the six-count maritime tort are: Chesapeake Marine Partnership of Havre de Grace; Chesapeake’s partners, Salisbury Towing Corps and Little Creek Towing Corp. of Sparks; The Arundel Corps of Sparks; and Langenfelder Marine Inc. of Stevensville, as well as the individual boats, barges and captains. Also named in the suit are Florida Rock Industries Inc., and Florida Rock Properties Inc. of Jacksonville. Changing weather and/or river-current conditions apparently had something to do with it. (Neither vessels are listed in the “Inland River Record.” The story referred to them as tugboats, and maybe they are.) (Editor’s note: River notes and the names of boats and what’s happening to them and to those who work them are welcome here. We’d like to hear from you. Email to jacksimpson@littleriverbooks.com.) For Those Inclined To Pray
 We have modified the steps for joining our Prayer Circle. If you visit the Prayer Circle link on at www.littleriverbooks.com, you will find that those who sign up are completely anonymous. We do not ask for first names nor states of residence. Joining is as simple as providing an email address to which we can send future prayer requests. Each prayer request list includes a link for including requests.
By joining our Prayer Circle, you can tap into the prayerful support of circle members wherever they are. Membership and prayer requests are open to everyone.
On The Waterfront
North America’s Oldest Steamboat Line Sold (Again!) Follow the bouncing ball!  Delaware North Companies of Buffalo, N.Y., is selling the Delta Queen Steamboat Co., based in New Orleans, to Ambassadors Cruise Group LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ambassadors International. The deal is expected to close at the end of April. It will include the 436-passenger American Queen, the 416-passenger Mississippi Queen, and the 174-passenger Delta Queen.
Ambassador operates cruises in the Pacific Northwest. The Delta Queen Steamboat Co. headquarters will be moved to Seattle, Wash., and only about a dozen shoreside jobs will remain in New Orleans the companies said Friday. (Before Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf, DQ had about 120 shoreside employees in New Orleans and another 400 to 500 on its boats. After the storm, Delaware North moved 60 jobs to Buffalo and laid off another 50.) According to one report, Ambassador will buy the three vessels and the Delta Queen brand for cash, customer deposits and debt, 100,000 shares of Ambassador stock, if certain unspecified financial goals are met. [We are not reporting the cash amount, since various reports differ widely in the amount of cash involved. One figure seemed reasonable. Another seemed preposterously low.] Robert Jumonville, direction of cruise and tourism operations for the Port of New Orleans, said the port had know that the DQ company was looking for partners but had not been told about the sale. “They’re picking it up for a song,” he said. Joe Ueberroth, president of Ambassadors International, said the purchase combines the Delta Queen Steamboat Co. and American West Steamboat Co., regional companies, and creates an American cruise company, operating under Ambassadors Cruise Group LLC. The acquisition increases the fleet to five and the number of births from 365 to about 1,400. American West presently operates the 231-passenger Empress of the North and the 150-passenger Queen of the West. The ball started bouncing some time ago. Among former owners, the DQ company was once owned by Coca Cola. In most recent history, the firm was purchased for $80 million in 2002 by Delaware North at a bankruptcy auction in Chicago. Business writer Rebecca Mowbray said the DQ company was dragged into bankruptcy in October 2001 when American Classic Voyages Co. failed after a $1 billion expansion to operate cruises along the U.S. Coast and between the Hawaiian Islands and move its headquarter to Florida. Mowbray reports that the DQ operations were successful but the operation ceased for about 15 months when American Classic failed. Delaware North then bought it at the bankruptcy auction in May 2002. As it relates to the latest purchase issue (it must be approved by the Maritime Administration), Bruce Nierenburg, DQ president, said the company had been moving in the right direction but Delaware North had decided that the cruise business wasn’t as good as it used to be. That’s when Nierenburg called Ambassadors to see if they were interested. Ambassadors operates marine, insurance, and event companies. Ambassadors, Mowbray reported, will continue to operate all published cruises for 2006, and will bring all three vessels back into service as Delaware North had planned in spring 2007. Is River Business Booming in Middle America? It was announced last week that a new company, Tell City Marine Contractors LLC have an $18 million project going in Tell City, Ind.—a project that is expected to result in the construction of a barge a month and employ up to 150 people. Tell City has given the new firm a 90-day lease on the old Maxon Marine property. If the “agreements” portion of the deal can be worked out, the new company will be given a 10-year lease with renew options every 10 years. Livingston County (Ky.) Judge Chris Lasher and the Livingston County Industrial Development Authority have announced the creation of a new company, Three Rivers Boat & Barge — it was scheduled to break ground in early April - that will have a yearly payroll of about $1.5 million and will employ 30-60 people in 2006 and an additional 40-60 in 2007. The firm will be located in Ledbetter, Ky. The new Livingston County company will also manufacture barges and pay its employees in the range of $15 an hour plus fringes. The company was developed as a result of the county’s economic development strategy, and a Kentucky $1.46 million incentive grant will be forthcoming for the firm. (Editor’s note: Normally wages are not part of such announcements, but the fact that the operation will receive a development grant indicates that perhaps this issue was supposed to be publicized, it was part of an economic development package.) Ohio River Barge-Fleet Flap Heads For Court Huntington, W.Va., and Huntington Marine Services, South Point, Ohio, will face up in court on May 11 to establish a trial date for their flap over Marine Service’s effort to establish a fleeting area for 200 barges along the West Virginia shore east from the mouth of Twelvepole Creek. “The Huntington Herald-Dispatch” reported last week that “Cabell County Circuit Court Judge John Cummings declined to rule Wednesday [March 29)] on an injunctive relief motion that Huntington Marine Services filed…” The motion had asked that the city be prevented from terminating its property lease with the company, the “Herald-Dispatch” said. Huntington Marine has tried to build a barge fleet three times since 1994. The city had signed a 20-year lease with the company at that time. The city officially cancelled the lease last October, and at that time, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers halted action on the company’s permit application for the project. The company’s lawyers contend that the city violated the lease agreement because it said that the company would “peaceably have, hold and enjoy the premises during the term” of the agreement. The city argues that the company failed to pay $120,000 for delinquent lease payments. The company says it should not have to make payments before August 2003, because the city has made an ongoing effort since then to torpedo the project. Stay tuned! Marine Debris Targeted For Cleanup Katrina hit the Gulf seven months ago. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has given the U.S. Coast Guard the task of cleaning up marine debris. It was reported last week that Mississippi’s Department of Marine Resources is partnering with the Coast Guard in Mobile, Ala., to get the job done. Power Company Goes Wireless Entergy Corps, which for decades has been criticized by cruise ship operators out of New Orleans, has cut power to the lines and buried new lines under the Mississippi. (Some operators said their vessels were too high to pass under the lines.) A year ago, the company wanted to keep the lines for emergency backup but agreed to remove them, the Associated Press reports. Work crews removed the lines on March 31, well ahead of the July 1 deadline set by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Originally it had been planned to remove the wire last September, but Katrina fouled up the works. A tower, which offered a foundation for the wires on the east bank of the river, is to be removed by the end of the year. Entergy is looking into the possibility of turning the west-bank tower into an emergency communications tower, an idea that came out of the Katrina hurricane experience. The $7.5 million project is expected to result in the return to New Orleans in the fall of cruise ships that pulled out of New Orleans due to the hurricanes. Owners Of Katrina-Tossed Barges Sued It is expected that lawsuits resulting from hurricane damage along the Gulf Coast will be as numerous as fleas on a junkyard dog. Several have already filed by homeowners in the Gulfport, Miss., area against barge owners and operators. One Gulfport suit is against South Trust Bank, owner of an 800-foot industrial barge. A West Gulfport suit is against Crowley Liner Services, Inc., because of damage allegedly caused by shipping containers. (Editor’s note: We suspect this is just the beginning. We will not fall into the trap of running stories on all of them. We may, however, run summaries when suits have been settled.) You can contact the editor directly at jacksimpson@littleriverbooks.com. advertisement
The River School - Deck and engineer licenses, radar observer, tankerman, fire and water safety courses, video programs. Travel classes in convenient locations. (800) 238-7113 www.riverschool.com Boat Photo Center
 Got another great bunch of pictures for you this week, including some dandies taken along the Dutch Coast by Jan van der Doe of Fergus, Ontario, Canada. The posted boats include: a map of the Dutch Coast and the vessels Ad Fundum, Albatros, Aquarius, Arbeco, Arjos and Bizon from Jan; Mv. Chris from Ron Richardson; John L. Rozance from Eric M. Johnson; and the Express, Sheila, Howard S. Guttman, Jacob G., Missouri, Kimberley Johnson, Aliquippa, Joe T and Edison Queen, and Mathies from Brent Maletic.
Try to avoid sending similar views of the same boat. If there are significant differences in the views, then by all means send them. We can still use more. — Jack Click here to see the latest pictures. 
Recipe Box
Do you have a good recipe you’d like to share? Submit your recipes here! The Book Beat
Books included as sales books (look at our web site) in previous issues included: “Views of the Mississippi” “Father Mississippi” “Taming the Upper Mississippi” “Steamboats on the Fox” “In Search of Moon River” “Let The Lower Lights Be Burning” “North America Inland Waterways Map And Index” “For Wood and Water: Steamboating on the Missouri River from Saint Louis to Fort Union, Dakota Territory 1841-1846” “Delta Queen”, the novel. All of these books are offered at great prices and can be found on our web site.  New Offerings this week include: “Portraits From The Past: Steamboats of the Western Rivers”, drawings & text by Neal R. Fink. Usually sells for $10 plus S&H. We’re offering it at $5.00 plus S&H. We have but a handful left. When they are gone, they are gone. Our final offer this week is for Pacific Northwest subscribers. We are offering “Discovering The Tidal Potomac: A Cruising Guide and Boating Reference”, by Capt. Rick Rhodes. This book usually sells for $26.95 plus S&H. We offer them as long as they last for $20 plus S&H. Few on hand.Self-publishing your book: J. R. Simpson & Associates is now accepting submissions from authors who wish to self-publish their manuscripts. When you self-publish “our way,” you pay for the project and you get virtually all of the books. Many existing publishing schemes do not pave the way for you to profit. Self-publishing “our way” does. If you have a book project in mind, call Jack at 314-921-4419 to discuss it. I’ll even talk to you on my nickel if you give me your phone number so I can return your call. The world of publishing is filled with booby traps. I can help you avoid them, even if you do not use our service. If your desire is to earn money from your book, if you believe in your project and are dedicated enough to work with it, you can do well with self-publishing. We walk you through it step by step until the books are on your doorstep. Give a call. — Jack advertisement
Those interested in learning how you can self-publish your book can find details listed at www.littleriverbooks.com where they appear in the index under other services. Get More Visitors To Your Web Site - Join The U.S. Inland Waterways Site Ring!
This is a web ring owned by Little River Books. It is dedicated to those who work, rest, or play on the inland waterways of the United States. Owners of river-related commercial or private sites can apply to join, bringing together as many waterways related sites as possible. Sign up (FREE), put the code on your page, and watch your hits skyrocket! Let’s see if we can make this one of the biggest and best river site rings on the web. Benefit from other river sites’ traffic and gain new visitors. If you sell a river-related product on your site, this is the ring for you! (You must copy and past the site ring graphic onto your web site as soon as your site is approved.) Check out the sites currently in the ring and their hit statistics as a direct result of being in the site ring. Tow Talkin'
April 10, 2006 By Kathy Flippo  Last Monday, April 3rd, was certainly a good river day. Started out in the morning by giving a 45-minute talk on the river to 64 people from one of our banks “Plus 60” groups. I try to make my talks educational, river safety around a tow, and of course funny. And there is funny because stuff that sure wasn’t at the time sure is in retrospect.
On the way home from that I saw Ingram’s Mv. Samuel B. Richmond headed north with coal loads. After supper we took advantage of Daylight Savings Time and headed for the river. The Mv. Angela K was in the Murray Island fleet just below the railroad bridge. A stranger in our midst! Now this is a boat with a long history, considering she was just built in 1979. Came out as the Bilbo Williamson, then she became the Richard A Coonrod, the John M. Stafford, the Laura Tamble and the Truck Morrison before she was…to continue reading, click here. See you on the Web, Jack Little River Books jacksimpson@littleriverbooks.com Don't forget to visit our web site! |
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