Big ship eats into the view, restaurant business at pier

The effect is comparable to having a semi truck parked in front of the picture window in your living room.

The Port of Seattle and Anthony's Pier 66 and Bell Street Diner agree about that much concerning the huge ship that's been parked just outside since October — and which is likely to stay put until April.

The 720-foot Kauai ordinarily transports goods between Seattle and Hawaii but is temporarily laid up as a result of the global economic crisis, said Port spokesman Peter McGraw. And the ship apparently isn't making the economic crisis any easier for the restaurant feeling the same pinch, as well as the Seattle Marriott Waterfront that also faces the water on Alaskan Way.

Scan reviews about Anthony's and the Marriott on seattle.citysearch.com or yelp.com and the reviews more often than not mention the views of the bay, mountains and city lights.

But now the 28-year-old, enormous brown ship obliterates most everything else that can be seen from there.

"They're not too excited about it being there," Anthony's general manager, David Herrild, said of patrons. "It, unfortunately, takes the majority of the view away from a view restaurant." He said it's hard to quantify the ship's damage to his business given the effects of the economy's sluggishness as well. "But when you decide you want to go to a restaurant with a view, if view isn't there ... ."

He's been asking the Port to relocate the ship.

Management at the Marriott asked the same thing, also complaining at a Port commission meeting that the ship was hurting business, according to McGraw. The hotel's manager couldn't be reached Tuesday. The ship's owner, Oakland-based Matson Navigation Co., leases space from the Port, and so does Anthony's. "We're trying to accommodate two different customers here," McGraw said.

The problem is a finite amount of space. "We're going to try and find a place to park it. There's just not a whole lot of options right now."

The dock is usually used during cruise season to load and unload passengers, so there's not usually a large ship there for long periods of time, McGraw said.

Linda Raber and her daughter, Karley Raber, ate lunch at the Bell Street Diner Tuesday but said the blocked view wasn't a big deal.

"I think it's kinda cool," Karley said.

Mark Rahner: 206-464-8259 or mrahner@seattletimes.com