Supporters of the ferry stated that the plan was not designed to increase business at Grand Victoria Casino
The city and the Rising Sun Regional Foundation, an economic development organization funded mainly by assessments on Grand Victoria, would foot the $500,000 cost of establishing the ferry.
"That's the farthest thing from the truth," foundation's executive director Ed Sullivan said of the purported link between the casino and plans for the ferry.
Rising Sun official have long contended that the Ferry is help people who commute from Rising Sun to Boone County for jobs, doctor's visits and various other reasons.
Patricia Walton, of Rising Sun, supported the ferry.
She said she owned auto part stores in both Rising Sun and Burlington, and the ferry would shorten her commute. "I think it would be very helpful. I travel back and forth from both places. Lots of people do."
Mark Madden, of Bellevue, has commuted to Rising Sun for the past 10 years for work.
He said a ferry would be a welcome addition, particularly on days when traffic on Interstate 275 is congested after an accident.
"I don't buy much in Indiana. I buy my things in Kentucky," Madden said. "But there are a lot of people like me who make that drive every day. This sure would be a big help."
Proponents say the ferry is designed to carry about 200 vehicles per day at about $4 per ride. The ferry would operate from dawn to dusk and would not carry any large trucks or other vehicles over 20,000 pounds.
Many residents, though, particularly those who live near the ferry's proposed docking point in Kentucky, worried the plan would increase traffic and ruin the rural nature of the area.
Mark Goodridge, who lives on McVille Road adjacent to the proposed ferry landing, said cutting into the shoreline to create the space for the dock could increase erosion of his property.
"Every year, I lose property to the river," Goodridge said. "What happens if this plan doesn't work out and all my property starts slipping into the river.
"Who is going to be responsible for that?"
Sandra Jones, another resident on McVille Road, said noise from the ferry and the vehicles it carries would be burdensome to the community.
"As it is right now, we can hear the cops pulling people over in Indiana," Jones said. "Don't tell me I'm not going to be able to hear a riverboat."
The proposal will now go before the planning commission's zone change committee, then to the full planning commission.
The Boone County Fiscal Court will have the ultimate decision on the venture, although the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also must approve it.
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