BELATED BLOGDAY ISSUE: THE FERRY

I just noticed that this blog's third birthday was a week ago today.

Well, actually, that was the third anniversary of my first post, which was legitimately forgettable. The first Cleveland Diary entry that was actually about something was three days later.

But whichever date you want to count as this blog's actual debut, I forgot about it till now. This is so typical. Just ask my family.

Don't worry, I'm not about to do a retrospective. But it seems like maybe I should check back on the first topic I wrote about. So... what's up with that ferry to Canada, eh?

Ah, here we go. Bad news, right in time to spoil my belated blogday party.

You'll recall that the Port of Cleveland finished its ferry feasibility study and got a big green light from its consultants. Then they put out a request for proposals and picked a ferry operator. Then they got a $7 million Federal grant to build a ferry terminal at Dock 28 behind Browns Stadium. So everything was pretty much ready to roll on the U.S. side of the lake a year ago.

What's still missing is a place to go on the other side.

The municipality of Central Elgin, Ontario -- which includes Port Stanley, the proposed ferry destination -- wants the ferry project (though local opinion is by no means unanimous). But so far they haven't gotten Transport Canada, which is selling off Port Stanley (the harbor, not the town), to agree to transfer it to local ownership. Meanwhile, Port Burwell, a few miles to the`east, is trying to get support for a competing ferry plan to be based in Fairport Harbor.

Here's a recent summary of how this all looks from the Canadian side.

There's no indication whether anyone from Cleveland is exploring the Port Burwell option.

I give the Port some points for their patient, systematic -- one might even say plodding -- approach to getting their big, expensive Canada ferry in the water. But after three years of planning, fundraising and negotiation with no actual deal in sight, I hope somebody at the Port is working on a Plan B. Maybe even a more modest, more affordable Plan B, designed just to get people and vehicles across the lake and back again.

Yes, yes, I know the Port staff are all too busy working on statewide development deals and eminent domain lawsuits. But a guy can wish, can't he? Especially on or about his blogday.