Maid of the Mist Boat Service Contract may go to Alcatraz Media

$800 million "Maid of the Mist" boat service contract may go to Atlanta, Georgia-based Alcatraz Media.

The Maid of the Mist boat service contract has been a major controversy in Canada for the last year.  The contract was awarded to a New York company without competitive bidding.  Former Niagara Parks Commissioner Bob Gale blew the whistle on what he calls "a dirty process."

Many members of Parliament called for the lease contract to be tendered.

Atlanta businessman, Bill Windsor, and Alcatraz Media, one of the largest companies in the tour business in the world, attempted to bid and were denied the opportunity.  Windsor sued The Niagara Parks Commission and Maid of the Mist Steamboat Company Limited and launched an intensive PR campaign.  (Lawsuit Story -- Part 1; Lawsuit Story - Part 2.)

The efforts proved successful on October 28, 2009 when the Ontario government announced that the boat service contract will be tendered for competitive bids.  A decision is due by spring 2010.

Windsor and Alcatraz Media, in a joint venture, have already submitted a bid that is projected to pay $100 million more over the 25-year term than the existing operator’s proposal.  So, it appears that Windsor and Alcatraz Media have an excellent opportunity to win this lucrative monopoly.

Windsor is a serial entrepreneur who has started over 60 businesses in his 40-year career.  Alcatraz Media is the largest seller of tours and activities in the world selling over 12,000 tours and activities worldwide with a network of over 2,500 market-specific web sites.  Complete details of the saga and hundreds of news reports are at www.NiagaraFallsBid.com.