YARMOUTH, Nova Scotia - The province of Nova Scotia has announced that it will give an additional $13 million Canadian - about $10.5 million U.S. - to subsidize operation of ferry service between Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, and Portland, Maine.
That's less than half what it spent on the service last year. But the owner of the Nova Star ferry is optimistic about the coming season.
The announcement was made in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia by Minister of Economic Development and Tourism Michel Samson. "I'm so happy to be here to say to you, ladies and gentlemen, madams and messieurs, the ferry is coming back to Yarmouth."
Amid the fanfare, though, a note of caution: There are strings attached to this $13 million investment. "Funding will only be provided to Nova Star each month, not all at once. And only after they submit expenses for review," Samson said. "And we will report how much Nova Star receives every 30 days, and Nova Star must report their passenger numbers."
"Well, the key to the success of the business is building up the passenger volumes," says Nova Star CEO Mark Amundsen. Amundsen describes himself as "very happy" at the announcement from Canada.
Despite disappointing passenger numbers last year, Amundsen is upbeat about 2015 - partly because of an uptick in business towards the end of the summer. Another positive factor for the coming year, says Amundsen, is access to the motor coach tour market.
"How the motor coach market works is they put out their catalogs a year in advance, sometimes even two years in advance, and they go out into the market," he says. "Well we missed that because we didn't get everything in place, funding from the province for 2014 until late in December 2013. Thus we missed that important cutoff."
This year, Amundsen says, Nova Star has access to that market and has already booked more than 50 coaches for the season, with another 30 likely to follow.
Nova Star Cruises between Portland and Yarmouth resumed operation last year, after a five-year hiatus. Key to making that happen was the more than $28 million Canadian invested by the province - that's almost $23 million in U.S. dollars, at the current exchange rate.
The money was supposed to last seven years. Instead, most of it was gone in two months, as passenger number failed to meet expectations. Nevertheless, Nova Scotia officials say the service had a clear economic impact on the province - contributing $13 million to the local economy.
Among the beneficiaries, Esther Dares, who runs a B&B in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. She says 2014 was her busiest season in nearly two decades, and is optimistic about the five-and-a-half month ferry season that begins in June.
"The Canadian dollar, the price of gas and the repeat second year of the boat are all going to contribute to our bank accounts in the industry on this side of the crossing," Dares says.
On the Maine side of the Bay of Fundy, meanwhile, business owners are also upbeat about the ferry's continuing service. Chris Hall heads the Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce.
"The Nova Star's announcement is great news," Hall says. "It's terrific they're coming back for a second year, and we've seen substantial economic benefits to the Portland region, so we're very happy to learn it."
And Steve Hewins, executive director of Portland's Downtown District, says the impact of the Nova Star is greater than some people think. Unlike cruise ship visitors who only spend a few hours in Portland, Hewins says Nova Star passengers often spend the night in Portland at either end of their journey.
"I think a lot money is spent in hotels, as well as restaurants and some shopping," he says.
The ferry service is also expecting financial help from the state of Maine. Nova Scotia tourism minister Michel Samson pointed out that Gov. Paul LePage had committed to a $5 million U.S. dollar investment in the project. What Samson didn't mention was that this line of credit has yet to be approved by the Maine Legislature.