The island-city of Key West invites visitors to stroll slowly, enjoy turquoise waters and take in the sunset. According to some residents, idyllic peace is in danger because of cruise ships. The small city of 26,000 inhabitants has thousands of visitors every day who come to see the quaint, often pastel-colored Victorian homes. The cruise tourist numbers are down, but many residents say more needs to be done. While many businesses depend on tourists, residents such as Arlo Haskell find the ships to be a nuisance and believe they cause environmental harm. The Safer Cleaner Ships non-profit was founded by him. Haskell said that the cruise ships are an industry that is profiting off of the beauty in Key West while harming it. In 2020, his association put forth three local referendums, one to limit the size of cruise ships, another to allow no more than 1,500 people a day to disembark and a third to prohibit boats that do the most damage to the environment. The proposals were approved by between 60 to 80 percent of voters. He thought it was a victory for Haskell. In June of 2021, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a law suspending the measures, arguing that voters couldn't be involved in maritime trade. The owner of Pier B, one of the city's main docking locations, donated almost $1 million to a political campaign committee supporting the governor, according to the Miami Herald. The public docks are closed. The Safer Cleaner Ships returned to battle after being surprised by a bit of unexpected economic data. Local finances did not suffer because of the cruise ship suspensions. The city collected 25 percent more sales taxes in 2021. While other states imposed rules and closings during the middle of the Pandemic, Florida promoted its open businesses and hotels and restaurants took advantage of that. Key West cannot limit the number of cruise ships, so the city administration decided to close its two public docks. Only one cruise ship per day can park at private Pier B. The era of two to three ships arriving daily is over. The move has hurt some businesses. Although cruise tourists only spend a few hours in the city, they still buy souvenirs and snacks. The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, where the US writer lived between 1931 and 1939, is one of the places the visitors support. Finding balance. The streets of Key West were almost empty. The first passengers to disembark from the cruise disembarked at the bike rental stand. She said that the main shops and the bars thrive off of the cruise ships. A lot of businesses around here would have to close if we didn't have them. Haskell believes that things should move one step further, with cruise ships at the private dock not allowed to exceed a size specified by residents. The boats cloud the water, which endangers the survival of corals, according to Haskell. Scott Atwell, spokesman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Key West, said the evidence was not clear. We don't have specific studies on whether the cruise ship turbidity is any different than natural turbidity or whether the cruise ship channel reaches our coral reefs in a detrimental way. Key West's city council has decided to monitor water quality and support coral restoration under an initiative that charges a fee to Pier B for disembarking passengers. We don't want to get rid of the cruise ships but bring them into a moderate level so that we have good economic conditions and good quality of life for our residents. gma/bfm/caw Carnival said in a statement that the ship's crew participated in search and rescue efforts until the ship was released by the US Coast Guard. The Memphis Police Department is looking for three women who went to a restaurant. Few know that Amazon has millions of Prime subscribers. 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