Billionaires do what they want to do

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos wanted a sailboat, and when you’re one of the wealthiest person in the world, that means it will the largest sailing yacht in the world. But he isn’t making any friends in the process according to this report that’s sizzling the internet:

Construction is underway for Jeff Bezos’ latest billionaire toy, a sail-assisted megayacht that comes with a reported price tag of $500 million, not including the cost of a matching shadow vessel that is, by all intents and purposes, another megayacht.

The problem is that the ship in question, for the time being referred to as Y721 or Project 721, is under construction at Oceanco, at Alblasserdam, near Rotterdam (see video). Once launched, it will have to reach the sea by passing through Rotterdam which means it would have to clear the Koningshaven Bridge, affectionately known to locals as De Hef.

De Hef is not just any bridge, but a historic monument and a local landmark that stands for rebirth. After it was damaged during WWII by the Nazi in 1940, it was one of the first structures in Rotterdam to be rebuilt once the war was over.

The gist is that Bezos’ new megayacht is a sail-assisted vessel, and its three masts are taller than the clearance of the bridge, so the plan is to have the municipality dismantle the bridge so the ship can pass, and then put it back together again.

Technically, Bezos isn’t taking down a historic monument for good, and he and Oceanco would be on the hook to cover all the expenses incurred. While the Mayor of Rotterdam has recently said that no such request has yet been filed formally, let alone a permit been issued, locals are not willing to let this happen, if they can somehow stop it.

Pablo Strörmann lives in Rotterdam and he, like some other 30,000 residents, as counted on Facebook, believes that Bezos shouldn’t be allowed to take down De Hef, even if only temporarily, just so he can let his big boat pass through.

The issue, Strörmann tells the NL Times, is that he should have thought of the clearance before starting to build his boat, just like any other boat owner who’s ever been in the area.

So, Strörmann is hosting a party by De Hef, and it’s one that will see the gorgeous Y721 pelted with rotten eggs, if Bezos and Oceanco get clearance to bring down the bridge.

“Normally it’s the other way around: If your ship doesn’t fit under a bridge, you make it smaller,” he says. “But when you happen to be the richest person on Earth you just ask a municipality to dismantle a monument. That’s ridiculous.

“Rotterdam was built from the rubble by the people of Rotterdam, and we don’t just take that apart for the phallic symbol of a megalomaniac billionaire. Not without a fight!”