A party boat Sheepshead Bay residents slammed for hosting raucous celebrations, including a booze-fueled bash which ended in a shooting, is moving to a berth directly across from a quiet senior citizen home — a switcheroo the facility’s residents want scuttled immediately.
“How could they think it’s a wise move to place that boat at our end of the marina?” asked Elizabeth Andropoli, the executive director of the Sunrise Assisted Living center, where the Golden Sunshine could be docked in front of by spring. “Our residents can’t sleep at night in the summer when the party boats are very active.”
The city decided to move the 350-person luxury catamaran currently stationed at Pier 2 on Emmons Avenue between Bedford Avenue and E. 26th Street, to Pier 4 near Dooley Street after residents assailed Joe Lind, the Golden Sunshine’s captain, with complaints, charging that his drunken revelers get into fights, hog up parking spaces, and litter the area with empty liquor and beer bottles.
Lind agreed to the move, claiming he could use a change of scenery.
“I would like to move down to the other end [of the bay],” said the skipper, who has kept his ship anchored at the eastern end of Sheepshead Bay, where entertainment vessels and fishing boats line 10 piers from E. 21st to E. 26th streets, for years.
The city’s Parks Department, which is responsible for doling out docking permits, said the pier across from the Sunrise Assisted Living home was the only spot available for the Golden Sunshine.
“We will continue to monitor this arrangement to see how it works,” said Parks Department spokeswoman Meghan Lalor. “If necessary, [we will] look for other solutions.”
Residents favored the move, even though it may bother elderly tenants at the Sunrise Assisted Living home.
“It’ll be better if it’s farther away from the more residential area,” said Theresa Scavo, chairwoman of Community Board 15.
Yet others said sailing the ship to another pier just waters down a much larger problem.
“This doesn’t eliminate the issue [of late-night booze cruising],” said Steve Barrison, president of the Bay Improvement Group. “It just moves it a few blocks down.”
Terrified neighbors yanked away the Golden Sunshine’s welcome mat after two men got into an argument before the 110-foot-long vessel set sail on Oct. 8. When the boat returned three hours later, one of the men fired a gun in the air. No one was hit, but rattled neighbors immediately petitioned the city to move the Golden Sunshine from Pier 2.
Reach reporter Daniel Bush at dbush@cnglocal.com or by calling (718) 260-8310. Follow him at twitter.com/dan_bush.
