The prospective new owner of the Chappy Ferry faced concerns about transparency, financial oversight, and the future of discounts for Chappaquiddick residents from local officials and members of the broader community during a recent virtual meeting, and some questioned whether the buyer truly understands life on the small island.
Brian Scall, an Edgartown resident and captain of the Chappy Ferry, introduced himself as a “ferry geek” to the Chappaquiddick community Wednesday in the virtual meeting, hosted by the Chappy Ferry steering committee. Scall said he fell in love with the operation, which he hopes to purchase from current co-owners Peter Wells and Sally Snipes, after moving to Martha’s Vineyard from Hatteras, N.C., in 2020, with his wife and young son.
“I love being on the water, driving boats, and I love engaging with people,” said Scall.
Scall said he finds purpose in helping Chappaquiddick residents in their daily lives, and emphasized that he understands the demanding side of the job. Referencing his experience as a captain over the past year and a half, he recalled all-night shifts and ice-breaking runs after winter storms, as well as helping in emergency situations, like when a woman went into labor and needed the ferry to run at 3 am.
“I rushed across to the other side, was sitting there with the gate up, the lights on, waiting for them to run down the road. They came right onto the ferry, and a baby boy was born the next day,” said Scall. “It was kind of this exciting, like ‘wow’ moment — I get to be part of something really neat, helping people in their everyday lives.”
The steering committee will give its recommendation to the Edgartown Select Board before a hearing at the town hall on May 11 on the license transfer, a requirement of the sale.
The steering committee raised questions about the finances of the ferry service under Scall’s ownership.
Scall confirmed he could only afford to buy the business with support from financial backers, but he wouldn’t publicly disclose the details of their financial agreement. Committee members were concerned about what those backers expect in terms of return rates.
“We know nothing about your financial backers,” said committee member Peter Getsinger. “Effectively, we could be going into a situation from very close, arm’s-length distance, to more distance in terms of ownership and operation of the ferry.”
Scall said he would still have 100 percent operational and financial control over the business.
“The only person who you’ll ever have to talk to and the only person who’s going to be making these decisions is me, and I wouldn’t have done it if it was any other way,” said Scall.
He compared his relationship with the investors as “similar to a bank, but with a much better rate,” and said they can provide capital for needs such as equipment repairs, accounting, and legal support. Scall highlighted this was not a short-term scheme to “make a bunch of money.”
“They don’t live on the Island. They don’t have homes on the Island. They don’t know how to run a ferry, nor do they want to run a ferry,” said Scall of his financial backers. “They wanted to find someone who had an idea for a business, and they are in it for the long term, as long as I am.”
Scall added that if any of the financial backers decide to exit the business, he would have the first right of refusal to purchase the ferry service in its entirety.
Getsinger noted that the steering committee has been “working toward some relatively common-sense goals” for the past six years, including increased financial transparency, and wanted to know these would be met under Scall’s leadership.
“We have an interest in finding out whether some of those goals are going to be accepted in terms of future operation of the ferry, or whether we are going to end up with the status quo,” said Getsinger.
John Dropich, another steering committee member, noted that financial transparency, either annually or during rate increases, is a major area of concern for the Chappaquiddick community.
Most recently, the Edgartown Select Board approved a 12 percent increase to service fares in July 2025, despite resident opposition and complaints about the transparency of the ferry service finances.
Scall said he could not discuss financial details in depth at the meeting because he, Wells, and Snipes are under a nondisclosure agreement. Scall said while financial transparency can be discussed in the future, the Chappy Ferry is a private business, and answers to the town’s select board at the advice of local officials, like the steering committee, and community members.
Dropich added that the real concern for residents is the Chappy Ferry’s monopoly over the route between Edgartown and Chappaquiddick Island.
“Even though you claim it’s a private business, it really is a monopoly operated as a private utility,” Dropich said. “That’s the real concern that all the folk have here, that you provide a public service, not a private service.”
The Chappy Ferry is a vital service for the Chappaquiddick community, and is the only way for thousands of passengers to travel across the 527-foot stretch of water between the smaller island and Edgartown. While the business is privately owned, it operates under a license awarded by the town, and needs approval from the select board before major changes are made. The business is also one of the oldest on the Island, operating since at least 1807, when a rowboat was used to cross the channel.
Thomas Tilghman, a seasonal resident and steering committee member from Florida, urged Scall to resolve any lingering customer-service issues, such as problems raised about the resident discount program.
“The resident program was set up for people back in the day who were on Chappy for the whole time, and now there are people that come and go,” said Tilgham. “It’s a problem.”
Other committee members have told The Times in the past that they would like more transparency in this program, which offers lower fares to qualifying residents.
Scall responded to Tilghman that he was reviewing the program.
“It’s very high on my list to try to understand the program, and see if there’s a way to make the program more efficient,” said Scall.
Bill Brine, a steering committee member, asked whether Scall had ever spent time living or staying on Chappaquiddick to understand residents’ realities. He even offered Scall a place to stay in August for a week.
Scall acknowledged that he hasn’t lived on Chappaquiddick, but he may take Brine up on the offer, although the move does raise concerns for Scall about emergency response time.
“If I’m the person that’s handling the emergency calls, and I am on Chappaquiddick, we’ve added an entire element of coming across because we can’t always store the boat on the Chappaquiddick side, based on its protection from the weather over on the Edgartown side,” said Scall. “Coming down then having to go across, we’ve added maybe 10 minutes to what is an emergency call.”
Brine emphasised that with Wells, one of the strongest selling points was the fact that he lived on Chappaquiddick, recalling that residents “suffered” when past vendors didn’t live on Chappy.
“I don’t think you really understand this business until you live in our shoes, and even if that’s only for a week in the summer,” said Brine. “The real thing is to be there in the winter and try to get your kid to school, and try to get a dentist appointment, or try to get your hair cut.”
Scall emphasized he is an affable person, and that he felt “incredibly lucky” to be able to drive a boat for a living and positively impact the lives of the people he meets each day. Scall also outlined that he plans to implement a new website with service alerts and standardized safety procedures, with a strong emphasis on community service.
“If you guys support this process and are there for me, I am going to do my best to be there for you,” said Scall.