Mayor Andrew “FoFo” Gilich came a step closer this afternoon to his goal of having Ship Island ferry service resume in Biloxi after the City Council approved $165,000 in funding for a city pier to be constructed on Point Cadet, between Harrah’s and Margaritaville.
“This is something we’ve been working on for months,” Gilich said. “The Skrmetta family, which operated a ferry service from Biloxi for years, committed to me last year that they were ready to resume operations of this popular family-oriented attraction in Biloxi, and the Secretary of State has agreed in principle to a Tidelands lease at this site. We’re just waiting on his signature on the dotted line and we’re ready to get moving.”
The best news: Gilich hopes the Ship Island ferry service would be up and running in Biloxi in Spring of this year.
The company would continue to operate out of Gulfport as well.
“As a teen-ager I worked as a deckhand on the Ship Island boat in Biloxi,” Gilich said. “It’s been a goal of mine even before becoming mayor to see this service resumed in Biloxi. The service would be near the majority of the hotel rooms, have nearby parking and it’s a great family attraction. The Ship Island ferry is one of those iconic things that says, ‘We are Biloxi.'”
See site for Ship Island ferry in Biloxi
Learn more about Ship Island ferry
See photos from the council meeting
Weekly recap: Fire, Police, Community Development
Every wonder how busy the men and women of the Biloxi Police, Fire and Community Development departments are? It’s relatively easy to find out through the online weekly reports from those departments.
Last week, the city’s Community Development Department issued 59 permits with a total valuation 1.45 million while the Police Department handled 2,839 calls for service, generating 159 arrests, and the Fire Department reported 118 calls for service, including 84 for medical emergencies and two incidents of individuals improperly burning trash.
See the archive of weekly reports
