Is Florida Billionaire to Blame For Failing Ferry Operations to Mackinac Island?

The Florida billionaire first purchased the ferry company in 2022.

UPDATE (8/12/24): The latest ferry schedules can be found here.

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Since then it's seemed like smoothing sailing-- until this past weekend, that is. Is this beloved Mackinac Island ferry company in dire straits?

As the busy summer tourist season winds down at one of Michigan's biggest and best tourist destinations, Mackinac Island, typically sees one final surge before kids and families head back to school.

No doubt the famously car-free island can feel quite cramped during the busy season which puts a strain on the 2 major ferry companies that operate on the island daily, Shepler's Mackinac Island Ferry and Star Line Mackinac Island Ferry Company.

However, things seem to be unusually tight this season as Shepler's posted some devastating news on August 8, 2024:

Excuse me, what?!

It sounds like ferry operations have been failing as I've seen families sharing their struggles on social media about delays and confusion about being directed to their sister ferry line.

However, many locals like Noëlle Babinski have come to the defense of Shepler's saying they inherited a ferry fleet in disrepair:

the boats did not pass coast guard inspection and havent been serviced or maintained in years. the boats (minus the 2 running out of mackinaw city...are finally getting the attention they need. if anything, its less profitable overall that the company had to pull out so many boats to get repaired.

The same Florida billionaire who purchased Shepler's in 2022 finalized a deal to acquire Star Line earlier this summer meaning David Hoffman and his Hoffman Family of Companies is now the largest owner of real estate parcels in the Mackinac area and currently employs nearly 500 people.

The Detroit Free Press first broke the news of its sale writing,

The second of two ferry services that shuttle visitors to Mackinac Island from the mainland of Michigan has sold to the Florida billionaire who purchased Shepler's Ferry two years ago, sources confirmed to the Detroit Free Press. The Star Line Mackinac Island Ferry Co. closed the deal at 11:59 p.m. Friday

In addition to Shepler's and now Star Line, Hoffman bought two local newspapers, the Mackinac Island Town Crier and the St. Ignace News. At the time of the Shepler's purchase Hoffman told the Free Press,

We're very much about maintaining the culture of Mackinac Island and that's what we bought into. We don't want to see that change

We will definitely be keeping a watchful eye on this situation and are hopeful for the situation to soon be remedied. Do you have any trips planned to Mackinac Island before the season end?