By Terri Lynn, SouthFloridaReporter.com, Managing Editor–Bonita Springs, FL–July 17, 2015– A standard pirate excuse for leaving no survivors is, “Dead men tell no tales.” This age old saying holds true for a dilapidated ship that was a restaurant for locals and tourists in Bonita Springs.
For the past 20 years “The Ship” has been a point of interest for the 60, 000 cars that drive past it every day on the west side of U.S. 41.
Intended to be a restaurant, the iconic ship that resembles a pirate ship, has had its ups and downs. Now, 10 years after being adrift and unoccupied on the busy roadway it calls home, The Ship has a final chapter.
This week, the Bonita Springs City Council voted to tear it down. Plans are in the works to build a housing facility for people 55 and older, if rezoning and construction is approved.
The 4,000-square-foot wooden ship was built using authentic plans for a 16th-century Spanish galleon. Over the years it has been a restaurant, bingo hall and a nightclub.
