The Fintry Queen has seen a lot of change in her nearly 70 years in the Okanagan, but the last decade’s been a rocky one for the iconic vessel.
The Queen started off as a car ferry back in 1948, carrying passengers and vehicles across Okanagan Lake. After the floating bridge was built in the late 1950s and the Fintry Queen’s services were no longer needed, the ship became a tour boat for numerous years.
After sitting idle for the better part of the past decade, current owner Andy Schwab is looking to get the Fintry Queen back in operation.
“Kelowna has been the ship’s home for more than 65 years. It could operate for another 65,” says Schwab. “The downtown marina pier and the outer breakwater for the (Kelowna) Yacht Club are now in place. There’s a safe landing site at the outside corner of City Park. We could approach the shore from one of two directions.”
This isn’t Schwab’s first attempt to get the Fintry Queen moving again. In 2014 he reportedly struck a deal with the City of Penticton to dock the boat west of the downtown Kiwanis Pier, with a plan to offer tours by the summer of 2015.
READ MORE: Kelowna’s Fintry Queen moving to Penticton — maybe
Schwab put out a call to the public to raise $600,000 to give the vessel a face-lift and build a new dock in Penticton, but that never came to fruition and this past March, the Fintry Queen was put up for sale.
READ MORE: Want to own a piece of Okanagan history? Iconic Fintry Queen for sale
Now Schwab is again looking to make the Fintry Queen a tourist attraction in the Okanagan, cruising the lake like she did for so many years before.
He has submitted a request to Kelowna city council to consider a landing site in City Park.
But even if he has council’s approval, Schwab still has a long way to go before the vessel takes on any passengers.
The Okanagan Lake Boat Company, which Schwab is president of, is looking to raise $500,000 to get the Fintry Queen back up and running. He estimates the ship needs $100,000 in renovations, $100,000 to bring certifications up to date and $300,000 to build a new dock.
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