By Dominic Abassi

Three firms express interest in passenger ferry

Jun 3, 2016 | 11:28 AM

Island Ferry Services isn’t the only company hoping to provide passenger-only ferry service between Nanaimo and Vancouver.

Two other interested companies came forward during a joint expressions of interest process by the city of Nanaimo and Port Authority.

They are Clipper Navigation and Riverside Marine.

Clipper runs the Victoria to Seattle passenger ferry service.

Riverside Marine is an Australian-based company that recently expressed interest in setting up service between Victoria and Vancouver, targetted at tourists.

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The city of Nanaimo’s director of community development Dale Lindsay says the city and Port Authority are now working to establish a technical advisory group.

“This will be an independent, third party group that will be responsible for evaluating the submissions by the proponents and ultimately making a recommendation to the liaison committee,” said Lindsay.

“We’re looking for accounting firms and firms that have experience in transportation, evaluating the proponents from those two perspectives.”

Lindsay says Nanaimo city council and the Port Authority board will then be asked to vote on the recommendation made by the advisory group.

Island Ferry Services has been working for several years to establish passenger-only ferry service between Nanaimo and Vancouver. David Marshall, their director of operations, told Island Radio in April that they told the city in November 2015 they had the required capital needed to get their operation off the ground.

However, council chose to terminate an MOU with Island Ferries and move ahead with the EOI process. In-camera meeting minutes from December 7th, 2015 show the motion to direct staff to terminate the MOU with Island Ferries passed with Mayor McKay and Councillor Brennan opposed.

A city release states the goal is to have a recommendation from the advisory group on a preferred operator by October.