http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20090129/news/301299994SEATTLE -- The scrapping of four mothballed Steel Electric ferries has been put on hold after the buyer, Environmental Recycling Systems, asked for a delay because of the plummeting price of metal prices.
The company had planned to tow the 80-year-old vessels -- two of which once plied the waters between Port Townsend and Keystone Harbor -- to Mexico to be scrapped. The Illahee, Nisqually, Klickitat and Quinault are now moored off Bainbridge Island at the ferry system's Eagle Harbor docking facility.
The state is seeking new bids for the more than 80-year-old ferries, which were pulled from service in November 2007 because of rusting hulls.
The state ferries system also is considering not scrapping the boats at all, but instead accepting a proposal from George Heidgerken, owner of a Tacoma company, Managing Green LLC, to keep the vessels intact and in local waters rather than scrapping them, said Marta Coursey, Washington State Ferries director of communications.
"They made us a favorable proposal," she said....(more@linke)
I'd like to see them fixed up and reused if possible.