Latest news with #JeffPiller
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Milwaukee abandoned boat; leader of crew that freed vessel talks
The Brief The owner of All City Towing spoke on Tuesday, May 20, about his team's removal of Deep Thought from Milwaukee's lakefront. The boat was abandoned back in October. Despite multiple attempts by other teams, the All City Towing crew successfully removed the boat in early May. MILWAUKEE - Boat watch 2025 is back! Well, sort of. On Tuesday, May 20, we learned a lot more about how a Milwaukee crew successfully removed Deep Thought, the boat that was abandoned on the city's lakefront. What we know On Tuesday, Jeff Piller, the owner of All City Towing, spoke at the Rotary Club. He was invited to share how his crew was able to free the boat which had been beached between Bradford and McKinley beaches from October 2024 until early May. Piller said his crew estimated the boat weighed between 40,000 and 50,000 pounds. It was actually close to 100,000 pounds. FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android Piller spoke about the challenges of removing the boat. He initially estimated the cost to free it from the beach would be around $50,000. It turns out that it was much more than that. What they're saying "There was a lot of people who wanted to see it stay but it was definitely time to get rid of the boat," Piller said. Piller said he is giving the county and taxpayers a discount, as they are figuring out a way to come up with the money to pay for it. Two donors previously pitched in around $20,000 to help with the costs. SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News "But we have went way over that," Piller said. "But I have a discount on my invoice. That's approaching about $35,000." What's next Milwaukee County Parks said final costs and responsibilities will be confirmed once it reviews the invoice. For now, the boat is being housed at All City Towing's lot on Milwaukee's south side. The Source The information in this post was produced by FOX6 News and taps into previous FOX6 News coverage.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Over 100 spectators gather to cheer and mourn 'Deep Thought' for what could be its final hours in Milwaukee
More than a hundred people swarmed Milwaukee's lakefront. A stretch of North Lincoln Memorial Drive was completely closed. A helicopter whirred overhead. You'd think someone important was in town. But no. It wasn't someone, but rather something — Milwaukee's iconic abandoned boat. Starting at 7 a.m. on May 6, crew members kicked off a sixth attempt to remove the boat, 'Deep Thought,' from the shoreline between Bradford Beach and McKinly Marina. Around noon, owner of All City Towing Jeff Piller announced the boat would likely remain on the beach for several more hours. 'It's a lot heavier than I thought,' Piller said. 'Now's a good time for a bathroom break." Milwaukee County contracted the Milwaukee-based towing company to lead the latest attempt to rescue Deep Thought, which has also been nicknamed 'The S.S. Minnow' by locals. Throughout the morning, crew members used two cranes to rotate the boat 90 degrees and drag it out of the water and onto the lakeside rocks. Earlier that morning, the crew also successfully salvaged the mangled remnants of a pontoon boat that got stuck next to Deep Thought in late April in a previous, failed rescue attempt. Cheering — and at times, lamenting — the removal attempts were at least 100 spectators. As the sun glinted off Lake Michigan on the 70-degree day, runners, bikers, families and dogs alike gathered for the what could be boat's final hours. What do resident think should happen to the defunct boat? Work is done to remove the abandoned boat "Deep Thought" from the shoreline of Lake Michigan near Bradford Beach in Milwaukee on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. The boat has been stuck since October after its Mississippi-based owners ran out of gas while operating it. By mid-morning on May 6, the grass was littered with backpacks, bikes, strollers and sweaters of the spectating crowd. Some, like Milwaukee resident Paul Fredrichs, said he planned to stay the entire day. Fredrichs said he's visited the boat regularly since October and worries it's become 'a bit of a hazard.' "Seems very Milwaukee-esque," he said of the spectacle. "One of our cheap amusements." In recent weeks, the Daniel W. Hoan Foundation donated $10,000 to rescue attempts, on top of an undisclosed amount already proffered by an anonymous donor. Milwaukee resident Elizabeth Ketter said she wonders about the time and resources funneled into the effort. During the boat's removal, a portion of North Lincoln Memorial Drive was closed to traffic for most of the day. Traffic was even at a near total stop a little before 9 a.m. as commuters navigated the detour. "It's become an inconvenience to the city,' Ketter said. Deep Thought has become a 'Milwaukee landmark,' others say Work is done to remove the abandoned boat "Deep Thought" from the shoreline of Lake Michigan near Bradford Beach in Milwaukee on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. The boat has been stuck since October after its Mississippi-based owners ran out of gas while operating it. Not everyone was ready to say goodbye to what they called a modern-day 'Milwaukee landmark.' West Allis resident Kelly Haessly said she's been following the boat's story since last fall and visited it for the first time May 6 with her son, who she did not identify and her dog, Bodie. 'We happened to be off work, and today was the big day,' Haessly said. For others, it was far from their first trip to the site. In the past few weeks, Milwaukee resident Alexander Minik said he's helped organize a boat "funeral," lit a candle at a boat vigil and even visited the site a final time in the early morning hours of May 6. "The boat has brought so many people together — artists, dancers, community members. It's funny, iconic, whimsical," Minik said. "I hope it continues to be this monkey wrench in the city's side." Shorewood resident Peter Froelich said he's biked past the boat almost every day since it got stuck. As crew members dragged 'Deep Thought' up the rocks, inch by inch, he said he hopes it won't be the last he sees of the boat. If its owners are willing, Froelich said he would like to see the boat attached to a trailer as a traveling attraction for Milwaukee's summer beer gardens. 'I'd buy a little chunk of it if that was an option,' Froelich added. MATC student sold 'S.S. Minnow' keepsakes to onlookers In fact, it was. Magnus Bonde, a 19-year-old first-year Milwaukee Area Technical College student, had the same idea. As the removal effort was underway, he was selling wood cut-outs he and his father salvaged from inside Deep Thought for $10. The wood, which included an engraving that read 'deep thought MKE,' was taken from the boat by Bonde and his father on May 5. 'The Minnow is an iconic piece of Milwaukee history," Bonde said, as he sold the last of the half-dozen or so of the keepsakes he had made. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee abandoned boat finally dragged out of Lake Michigan
