Monday, October 05, 2009

This town needs a good zeppelin

Say what you will about Dorchester, Mass. but big ideas get floated here and not all of them go down in flames. There's been some discussion about opening a zeppelin school in Dorchester as a way to build community pride while providing vocational training in a specialized field.

Advertising dollars are short this recession and the Hood Dairy has decided not to sponsor thier blimp this year. The DirectTV folks have been floating a blimp over Fenway, but no one has gotten very excited about that. A group of Dorchesester philanthropists have entered negotiations to purchase a second-hand zeppelin and operate it out of the industrial area by the Dutch Maid Bakery, near where the duck boats are maintained.

The idea is to plaster the word 'Dorchester' on one side along with a distinctive image emblematic of the neighborhood, a sleeping baby perhaps. The other side will be rented out to advertisers for the highest bids. Ad revenue will pay for maintenance and fuel as well as subsidize a school for inner city youth to train them in zeppelin mechanics and piloting skills. It's a unique proposition with no competition. A little slipshod, cursory research reveals no other municipal blimp programs in the US.

The neighborhood of Dorchester fills many niches and this is just the latest. Dorchesterites dream big and they aren't discouraged by long odds. The bigger the idea, the higher it will float.

2 comments:

DottieHottie said...

I hope if they use the sleeping baby, the emblem reads "Dorchester is Dreamy!" Will the Whalehead King enroll in zepellin school?

Darrell Campbell said...

The idea of a "blimp" or "zeppelin" school has some, small merit. If it gains any traction, I'd be pleased to come speak to potential developers of the school; or, teach.
Darrell Campbell
Turtle Airships

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