Captain John’s restaurant boat is back on the market

Captain John’s restaurant boat is back on the market

(Image: booledozer)
Do you have a few thousand dollars that you can afford to throw directly into the depths of Lake Ontario? Get your wallet out. The Star reports that the Toronto Port Authority has called off its deal with local entrepreneur James Sbrolla, who in August bought Captain John’s restaurant boat for $33,501 in a court-ordered auction. Although the price was cheap by giant-boat standards, it quickly became apparent that Sbrolla had overpaid. His purchase came with an obligation to remove the boat from its slip at the base of Jarvis Street by August 22—a deadline that came and went as Sbrolla struggled with the logistics of dismantling the aging watercraft. (It has to be carefully disconnected from the city’s electrical grid, and is believed to be full of hazardous building materials.) It’s unclear what will happen to the boat now. The only other qualified bidder in August’s auction wanted the port authority to pay him $300,000 to remove the thing. The Star says officials expect Captain John’s rusting, debt-ridden hulk to remain in place at least until spring.