Captain Mark Schiller dreams of the day when the rivers of Pittsburgh are teeming with boats ferrying passengers back and forth to ball games, restaurants and shopping.
“We need more activities on the water,” says Schiller, vice president of
Pittsburgh Water Limo and former owner of Trolls, now
Redfin Blues on the North Shore. “People love a city by the water, whether it’s a pond, lake or ocean. I’d like to do a commuter boat for rush hours.”
Pittsburgh Water Limo is doing its part to set the city sailing. This spring Miss Pittsburgh will run four trips from the Cork Factory dock on 23rd Street in the Strip District to the landing at Roberto Clemente bridge by PNC Park, picking up passengers with reservations at the Convention Center dock along the way. Cruises start 90-minutes before game time.
There’s more. Passengers who spend $10 anywhere in the Strip will receive a free cocktail on board with a same-day receipt. A food receipt for $10 or more from Mullaney’s Harp and Fiddle, Right by Nature and Spaghetti Warehouse will get you a 50 percent shuttle discount aboard the 49-passenger enclosed pontoon with lounge-like seating.
And there’s party packages too, if you’d like to do a little more cruising.
“This started as an expensive hobby 10 years ago. Now it’s a successful business and we want to grow it,” says Schiller. The enterprise was fully booked for Steelers games in 2008.
“This will be our first full year, he adds. “We’re hoping to drum up interest, even if the team isn’t that good. We take bikes, dogs, if they’re curbed, and we do joint ventures with
Kayak Pittsburgh.”
Schilller is working on plans to launch a Friday and Saturday night shuttle from the Strip to Station Square. “We want to offer a whole evening of activities. We’re just trying to fill a niche and make Pittsburgh fun.”
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Writer:
Debra Diamond SmitSource: Mark Schiller, Pittsburgh Water Limo
Image courtesy Pittsburgh Water Limo