Meet the groups deciding the future of the Bald Head Island ferry and what's next

Renee Spencer, Wilmington StarNews
·3 min read
The battle over the Bald Head Island Ferry continues, involving several parties.
The battle over the Bald Head Island Ferry continues, involving several parties.

Five years ago, Bald Head Island Limited began working to secure a new owner for the island's ferry system.

Initially, the plan was to convey the ferry to a transportation authority appointed by the state legislature, allowing the ferry and tram system to become public. But that didn’t happen.

The sale has now become a years-long battle and testimony is set to being this month regarding these assets.

Here are the parties and their positions:

Bald Head Island Limited

  • A private company, owned by the family of George P. Mitchell, owns the ferry, barge and tram systems, which are then leased to Bald Head Island Transportation. Limited has been working to sell the systems, as well as other related assets, to settle Mitchell’s estate. Mitchell, the original developer of Bald Head Island, passed away in 2013.

Bald Head Island Transportation

  • A public utility that operates the island’s ferry and tram system, subject to regulation by the NC Utilities Commission. Bald Head Island Transportation is a subsidiary of Bald Head Island Limited.

More:Bald Head Island ferry sale: New government appointments draw suspicion

More:Bald Head Island says second ferry system appraisal is erroneous

Bald Head Island Transportation Authority

  • A board of trustees created by the NC legislature to negotiate the sale of the ferry system and make it a public entity. The authority seeks to purchase or lease the ferry. It functions as its own municipality, much like the N.C. State Ports Authority and the N.C. Turnpike Authority.

Bald Head Island

  • The municipality and governing body on the island. The village appointed representatives to the authority but later expressed a desire to purchase the ferry and tram system. In 2022, the village filed a case with the Utilities Commission to determine whether the barge and parking facilities are considered public utilities. It has also challenged the sale to SharpVue, citing a 1999 Right of First Refusal document.

SharpVue Capital

  • A private equity and real estate firm based in Raleigh. In May 2022, SharpVue entered into a contract with Bald Head Island Limited and Bald Head Island Transportation to purchase the ferry system, the barge and parking assets. When Bald Head Island filed its case with the Utilities Commission, SharpVue became a party in the proceedings.

Who will own the ferry?

At this time, the battle over the ferry’s future ownership continues to play out.

On Dec. 30, 2022, the Utilities Commission ruled the barge and associated parking facilities are public utilities because they serve the ferry system, which means Bald Head Island Limited cannot sell or transfer these facilities without the commission’s approval. Because the ferry and tram system were already considered public utilities, the sale of these assets were being considered by the commission, and the hearing, which was set to begin this month, has been postponed.

In the case of the Right of First Refusal, correspondence obtained by the StarNews indicates Bald Head Island Limited disagrees with the village’s claims, and both parties have threatened to pursue litigation.

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This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Meet the groups deciding the future of the Bald Head Island ferry