Page 57: of Marine News Magazine (November 2022)

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“I can’t tell you how excited I am to stand here with Miss Katie behind me,” said Tobin. “Having access to this dredge and having a dredge here full time is going to be huge because we’re going to be able to be there right after a storm hits all the hotspots going in and out the channel and just constant maintenance, which it’s never had.”

Tobin highlighted the fact that the public-private partnership that was formed to develop the dredge is the ? rst of its kind—and an endeavor that many people across the country have been closely watching unfold since day one. “We went out and did a public-private partnership—the ? rst one in the United States,” said Tobin. “There are many, many other people watching what we did. Every time we’d go to one of these meetings—we just got back from a meeting in Wilm- ington—and people asked about this particular vessel and how we did it.” “The completion of Miss Katie and her long-awaited arrival here on the

Outer Banks is a historic moment and will be a game-changer for watermen in Dare County,” said Dare County

Board of Commissioners Chairman

Bob Woodard. “Commercial and rec- reational ? shing are not just enormous economic drivers in our community; they’ve also been a way of life for thou- sands of folks here in Dare County for generations. It’s absolutely critical that we have the resources in place to properly dredge our channels and in- lets that these watermen depend on as their highway to get to work every day—and thanks to the county’s part- nership with EJE Dredging and the arrival of Miss Katie, we’ll be much better equipped to do just that.” www.marinelink.com MN 57|