On Wednesday, February 21st, the city of Key West denied a request from Royal Caribbean to extend its private pier. The decision was made in order to protect the public and local economy from potential environmental damages brought on by cruise ships that have increased in size over time.
Key West is denying a rule change that would allow larger cruise ships to dock at their private pier. The city council voted unanimously to deny the request of Carnival Cruise Line, which was seeking to expand the size of their ships by 2022. Read more in detail here: is key west allowing cruise ships 2022.
The disagreement between homeowners who want cruise ships banned from entering Key West and the owners of privately-owned Pier B with local businesspeople who want cruise ships to come to Key West is turning into a judicial battle with no obvious winners.
There seemed to be an arrangement in the works during the previous several months that would have enabled cruise ship traffic to continue under a new agreement between Pier B and the local administration. However, the deal was rejected by the Key West commission in a vote.
What’s Going on with Cruises in Key West?
The situation in Key West is growing more difficult. The major source of worry is a 1994 agreement between Pier B and the Key West municipal administration. Pier B has practically infinite usage and options to enable cruise ships to visit Key West, according to this agreement.
Negotiations between Key West and Pier B culminated in a new agreement that would have enabled Pier B to continue operating, but only under certain conditions.
New Year’s Day, Easter Sunday, Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Eve were among the five days a year when no cruise ships were permitted to land at the port.
Stuart Monk / Shutterstock / Shutterstock / Shutterstock / Shutterstock / Shutterstock
There were also ten more days to be negotiated between Pier B and the city when no cruise ships were permitted at Pier B, an average of 349 cruise ships each year across three years, and a daily passenger disembarkation restriction of 3700 people.
While this would have been a concession by Pier B under the prior agreement, it falls well short of the demands made in the 2020 vote. The revised agreement was rejected by the city commissioners.
What is apparent is that cruise ships are continuing traveling to Key West as normal, notwithstanding the present negotiations between Pier B and the city. SaferCleanerShips, the group supporting the referendum, believes this is unconstitutional.
Is Pier B a lawful establishment?
SaferCleanerShips’ most recent argument, which seems to have addressed the agreements between the city and Pier B owner Mark Walsh, is that the Pier B buildings as they are presently are not as agreed in 1994, and hence unlawful. As a result, the whole 1994 accord would be up for debate.
Mark Walsh, on the other hand, isn’t having it. “The available public records contain unequivocal proof” that “in 1999, the City (a) authorized and supported the Pier B expansion; (b) granted a building permit for the Pier B expansion; (c) issued a certificate of occupancy for the Pier B expansion; and (d) represented to the state of Florida that the expansion of Pier B was approved,” Walsh said.
Photo credit: Shutterstock.com/photravel ru
According to a letter sent by then-assistant city manager John Jones to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection in 1999,
“After reviewing the Pier B development proposals, city administration has no issues to the current plans…. The improvements to Pier B will provide a safer berth for cruise ships and more convenience for guests.”
Are There Any Alternatives?
Both sides in the Key West cruise ship dispute do not seem inclined to reach an agreement that is acceptable to both parties.
Pier B’s business model would be wrecked if SaferCleanerShips had its way. If Pier B continues to operate as it does now, SaferCleanerShips will have lost the whole 2020 vote.
However, it seems that there is little area for legal debate. SaferCleanerShips’ statements, according to city commissioner Mary Lou Hoover, are founded on scant evidence:
“While I realize that you do not want any cruise ships to visit Key West, I continue to believe that the city has no influence over Pier B’s operations.”
“Thought-provoking material. Why go through the time and cost of three referendums if SCS felt the agreement between Pier B and the city was unlawful or void? Why not have the agreement annulled by a judge? Why did the city collect money from Pier B to the tune of $25 million if the agreement never existed?”
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The discussions seem to be stuck now that the accord has been voted down. Mark Walsh and Pier B seemed to be prepared to make a number of sacrifices in the name of SaferCleanerShips and, at the very least, more tightly restricted cruise ship traffic to Key West. It remains to be seen if that attitude will persist.
One of the alternatives that might be considered next is a jury trial to determine who has the legal right to Key West’s Pier B and the cruise ships that frequent there.
If Pier B has all of the necessary licences and permits, this might spell disaster for SaferCleanerShips and their aim to prohibit ships from Key West.
The “key west cruise ship protest” is a protest that has been happening since the city of Key West, Florida passed a law in order to allow larger cruise ships to dock at their private pier. The group of protesters have been fighting against this change and the city has decided to take it back.
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