EDITOR, Daily News:
I have heard from a number of constituents and community leaders about their concern for the purchase of Crowley Fuels by Petro Marine. Not only have I heard from many individuals, but I have also heard from both the Ketchikan Gateway Borough and the City of Ketchikan that this merger will impact their budgets at a time when both entities are already struggling to deal with a major loss in revenue. I, too, am concerned. Here are some of the points I hear most often:
1. Most comments compare this situation to the merger of AML (Lynden Transport) and Northland Services, Inc. That merger created a non-competitive market for shipping goods to Ketchikan, and there is worry that the merger between Petro Marine and Crowley Fuels could result in another non-competitive monopolistic marketplace.