Like crocuses, election season has passed, not to reappear for year. Like those blooms, participation in town government is left to the winners, and the rest of us can go back to ignoring all things political, at least on the local level. Which, in my humble opinion, may be a good thing.
The town is back to doing the people’s business as usual. All went without a hitch, the way true democracy is supposed to work. Nobody stole the election, though it was reported that some candidate’s signs were purloined.
One vision of a better town suggested by one candidate in their literature (I forget who, there were so many “new” ideas) has caught my attention. How about we monetize our harbor and beaches?
Generating new revenue using our fine waterfront and beaches is an idea whose time has come. Why didn’t I think of that? And, I have a few suggestions to do just that. (Surprised?)
Our fine town is known for its history of building whaling ships. After all, we (well our forefathers) built thousands of them that helped New Bedford light the world. Let’s take a page from Boston, Plymouth and Mystic, Connecticut. Boston has Old Ironsides, Plymouth has the Mayflower replica and Mystic has the Charles W. Morgan. No doubt, they generate tons of money by bringing in tourists to their harbors.
Why can’t we? A full-size replica of the Wanderer would be just the ticket to put us on the map and provide a steady revenue stream. Say 30 bucks a ticket plus a parking fee at the Bike Trail lot (the walk to the harbor is free) would be a nice, affordable afternoon exploring history on a real, fake whaling ship.
Of course, there might be a small problem of finding enough ship builders to complete the project. Craftsmen of that type are few and far between, plus they wouldn’t come cheap. But, that’s a small detail we can take care of later.
In the meantime, I have one or two other revenue builders. We could rent one of those duck boats they cart tourists around in Boston to give tours of our town. The arch bridge would certainly be a popular attraction and, of course, Salty our giant seahorse. Too bad Dunseith Gift Shop isn’t still there, Mr. Dunseith would clean up.
After its tour of our land-based sights, the duck boat could sail over to Ned’s Point Light, stopping so the tourists could enjoy a picnic lunch … at a small charge of course. Returning to the sea, the driver would point out the very spot where a 16-year-old boy from out of town was bitten by a shark in 1936. Well, maybe that would not be a good thing to tell tourists.
Heading back to the harbor, the driver would be sure to point out the exact spot where the creator of Jeopardy, Merv Griffin, had his yacht moored some years ago and where the New York Yacht Club used to visit. Tourists wouldn’t want to miss that.
Promoting these attractions couldn’t be too difficult. Just recently, a Boston TV station did a nice piece on our village. I know for a fact that it attracted some curious visitors. Two days after the piece aired, my bride and I were walking along Water Street when a car stopped, and a couple inquired if we lived in town.
“Yes”, we said proudly. “Well, where is the center of the town?” they asked. “You’re in it,” we offered. Not 10 steps later another car stopped. “Do you live here?” “Yes,” we said. “So, where’s the town?” they asked. They were both from far away. So, there you go, people are clamoring to visit our village.
I do like a whaling ship docked at our wharf. Don’t you?
Mattapoisett resident Dick Morgado is an artist and happily retired writer. His newspaper columns appeared for many years in daily newspapers around Boston.
Thoughts on…
By Dick Morgado