Going! Going! Almost gone! Milwaukee's abandoned boat 'Deep Thought' set for public auction
Milwaukee County plans to move ahead with publicly auctioning off Deep Thought, the abandoned boat that was stranded on Lake Michigan's shoreline, provided the county can acquire legal ownership before bidding can begin.
"The issue with ownership is Milwaukee County does not have title to this property," James Tarantino, deputy director of Milwaukee County Parks told the county's Parks and Culture committee on June 10. "Because it's now been abandoned, and is really more like a sculpture than a boat, we're trying to determine what that legal bill of sale looks like."
Tarantino said that the county is primed to list the boat at auction as soon as the legal details are ironed out in the coming days or weeks.
Mississippi-based couple Sherry and Richard Wells left Deep Thought on the lakeshore between Bradford and McKinley beaches after running out of gas during a thunderstorm in mid-October. In May, given the questionable nature of the boat's ownership as well as the Wellses' inability to pay for the boat's removal, it was determined that the county was responsible for salvaging the boat.
"At the end of the day, I don't want the county to be on the hook for this," Supervisor Steve Taylor said.
In May, the county was left with a $50,000 bill from Milwaukee-based company, All City Towing, for removing the abandoned boat that saw many well-wishers bidding the boat farewell. The county received $30,000 in donations from the Daniel W. Hoan Foundation and an anonymous donor to help cover costs for its removal, still leaving a $20,000 dent in the county's coffers.
"I think a summer auction is the way to go," said Supervisor Sheldon A. Wasserman, whose district was home to Deep Thought. "Let's strike right now when the interest in the boat is at its highest."
County Corporation Counsel attorney Scott Brown has not ruled out filing legal actions to recover costs, potentially in federal court or another state.
"Short version of it, I think, at this point, it's what I would call drilling a dry well. I don't know if these people are collectible. From what my understanding is they are of I think modest means," Brown told supervisors. "We could get a judgment against them, but it may not be worth the paper."
Brown said he is still evaluating legal avenues.
"This is a bad precedent, you know, that somebody can just leave their boat on Milwaukee County property, and we have to take care of it," Supervisor Steven Shea said. "This is about as big a public nuisance as we can get."
In May, Wisconsin lawmakers proposed a new bill that could subject any boat owners who abandon their watercrafts for longer than a month to prison time.
Supervisors also asked about the possibility of establishing a policy or action plan if a similar situation arises in the future. While Tarantino said he is waiting to see how the state legislation plays out, he is reluctant to establish something as concrete as policy given the unique nature of the Deep Thought incident compared with most boats that moor on Lake Michigan's shoreline.
Tarantino applauded the fact that the County Board raised the fees for illegal dumping earlier this year.
"That's an example of a policy that we think is a good deterrent," he said. "We are absolutely committed to dealing with these problems as they come up. We're just unfortunately not resourced if this continues to happen more frequently."
Contact Vanessa Swales at 414-308-5881 or vswales@gannett.com. Follow her on X @Vanessa_Swales.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee's abandoned boat Deep Thought headed to public auction
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