For the first time since the former Chicago Fire Boat Fred A. Busse sailed south for a new life in the Windy City in 2019, you could soon see regular boat tours resume in Sturgeon Bay.

The Sturgeon Bay Common Council will weigh in on a new lease agreement between the city and DoCo, LLC for the former launch ramp south of the Michigan Street Bridge and north of 120 N. Madison Avenue. The site near the Door County Maritime Museum was where the former Door County Fireboat was moored for several years before being sold to a Chicago touring company. The city has not had a tour boat operator since the Fire Boat’s departure. DoCo, LLC’s proposal includes installing a floating dock system that would allow it to tie off a pair of 40-foot tour boats. The company plans to offer tours between Lake Michigan and Sherwood Point during the summer season. The proposed lease runs from May 1^st, 2023, and ends on December 31^st, 2026, and could be extended automatically on a year-by-year basis.

Photo by Thomas Jordan

The Sturgeon Bay Common Council will also discuss a new Planned Unit Development proposed for Colorado Street and North 6^th Avenue and its 2022 Financial Audit Report when it meets on Tuesday at 6 p.m.