PORT LUDLOW — The New Star may leave Port Ludlow Marina this week after overstaying its welcome by about 14 weeks.
The rusting, engineless ship, moored at the pleasure-boat marina since Oct. 1, could be moved to a new location as early as Friday, according to a state Department of Natural Resources spokesperson.
“We’d like to have it moved by the end of the week, but it depends on the weather and other factors.” spokeswoman Toni Droscher said.
Personnel with DNR, which seized the vessel as derelict last week, met last Friday to discuss the disposition of the ship.
Its former owner, George Marincin, president of VicMar Inc. of Tacoma, defaulted on several promises to dispose of the vessel, prompting the government action.
A team from Global Diving and Salvage, which has an emergency contract with DNR, is scheduled to be on site today, at which time it will prepare the ship to be towed.
The ship’s destination has not been determined, but it is one of three undisclosed locations, according to Aquatics Assistant Division Manager Dennis Clark.
Once the destination is determined, the DNR will file a tow plan with the Coast Guard, Droscher said.
The DNR also has assumed a contract with Vessel Assist of Port Hadlock for protection of the boat.
Vessel Assist owner Roger Slade said Marincin contracted for the service at the beginning of October, providing monitoring of the wind and weather, and stepping into preventive action if conditions threatening the marina occurred.
Slade said he terminated the contract with Marincin on Dec. 1 after which time the Port Ludlow Marina assumed a new contract.
Slade said the bill for services depends on conditions with Marincin assuming an average $1,000 daily responsibility and the marina’s cost at about $200 to $300 a day.
The 180-foot-long, 325-metric-ton hulk was moored when it was accepted by Marina Manager Kori Ward for what was intended to be a one-week period.
Since then, Marincin has set and broken several deadlines for the removal of the vessel before reportedly ceasing to return calls from the state, the marina and the news media in December.
On Oct. 21, he said he planned to tow the ship to Neah Bay, but the next day, Port of Neah Bay Director Bill Parkin said the New Star was not welcome at Makah Marina.
On Dec. 3, Marincin was quoted as saying the ship would head to Astoria, Ore.
Port of Astoria CEO Hank Bynaker declined to provide moorage for the vessel.
Ward said Marincin did not return or pick up any of her calls for several weeks, but right after Christmas she called him from a phone that was not her own so the caller ID did not indicate her identity.
“He answered all cheery saying, ‘How can I help you’ but when I told him who I was, he fell silent,” she said.
“I told him that I hoped he had a good Christmas.”
Slade said that Marincin paid about 10 percent of what was owed.
“He hasn’t been totally irresponsible. He just got caught up in circumstances that were beyond his control,” Slade said.
“But so did I.”
Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
