HN Explorer

11 comments

[ 2.0 ms ] story [ 36.2 ms ] thread
tromp
Jeff Bezos commissioned Oceano in Alblasserdam to build him a gigantic pleasure yacht with masts exceeding the bridge's 40 meters clearance.

It is impractical to partially finish the ship, move it through the bridge, and then finish it somewhere else.

So the city of Rotterdam agreed to temporarily dismantle the bridge, with Bezos reimbursing the costs.

dekhn
In Xanadu did Kublai Khan a Stately Pleasure Dome Decree.
nisegami
Seems excessive, but I imagine that the shipbuilding company (Oceano) is beneficial to the local economy. It doesn't strike me as odd that the city would honor their request.
FDSGSG
Doesn't seem excessive or unusual, stuff like this is normal anywhere where companies build big things.
iamevn
maybe not, but it seems really odd that an established ship-building company would build something that can't make it down-river like that
FDSGSG
It would only be odd if this arrangement was somehow unusual, but it isn't. The bridge was designed to do this.

It would've been unusual for local authorities to not work with the shipbuilder.

wildzzz
Unless they had already talked to the city to make sure the bridge could be moved before building the yacht. Do you really think they just built the fucking thing and crossed their fingers that the city would allow the bridge move?
FDSGSG
Municipality fails to sabotage local shipbuilding industry in order to spite foreign billionaire?
[deleted]
(comment deleted)
wil421
At first I thought Bezos was taking his yacht into Rotterdam but it makes a lot more sense.

If the municipality doesn’t want the yacht builder to dismantle the bridge they should put restrictions on how large they can be. I’m betting it’s much better for the city to be building, presumably, some of the best yachts in the world. They should come to some kind of agreement that’s ok for everyone city, ship builder, and historical society.

egberts1
Thousands of ship-building jobs vs a lone bridge.

Ergo: Raise the bridge.