Taxpayers foot bill for moving derelict houseboat

Holly Hill taxpayers are now footing the bill to remove a man's houseboat from the Halifax River.  On Tuesday, crews finally started moving the houseboat that ran aground near Riverside Drive.

The boat's owner was arrested in December for threatening to kill police if they moved his boat. On Tuesday, he told Eyewitness News that he is not giving up his fight.

When workers started pumping water underneath Robert McGary’s 60,000-pound house boat in Holly Hill in an effort to move it, residents lined up to watch.  The 52-foot vessel is McGary's home, but it became a nuisance when it washed ashore during a storm last October.

"I knew there might be a chance that this would happen, and it's just an inconvenience,” explained McGary. “I mean, yeah, they made me homeless.  It's an inconvenience; not the end of the world.  Oh yeah, I'm going to fight (them) tooth and nail, you can bet on that."

So far, McGary has been losing the fight against code violations for anchoring to public land.  The city issued him a final notice to move his boat in December, and that is when police arrested him for threatening to use lethal force against officers if they boarded his boat.

"I didn't make threats. What threats? You talking about my maritime law; that's a statement of fact," said McGary.

On Tuesday, McGary cooperated with police.  They took possession of his boat Monday night and took up a collection to provide him with a motel room.

“We're certainly working with him to get his life back together.  Best case scenario for this is he is able to reclaim his vessel and sail off into the sunset, if you will," said Holly Hill Police Chief Mark Barker.

The boat removal is costing taxpayers $8,700.  Then, taxpayers will pay even more to store the boat at a nearby marina. It is not clear, yet, how much that will cost.

McGary has 30 days to pay the cost of removing the boat or it will be auctioned off to recoup that money.  However, the police chief says the city would consider giving McGary more time if necessary.