The Pearl Button prepares to dock in the Muscatine Harbor Thursday afternoon.

MUSCATINE, Iowa — Muscatine’s newest riverfront attraction has paddled its way to town right down the Mighty Mississippi.

The three-story tall, double-wheeled cruiser settled into the Muscatine boat harbor around 4:30 p.m. Thursday after a long trip from Stillwater, Minn. The boat traveled for about 10 days at four to five mph.

“The weather was perfect this morning and everything was right,” said owner Tom Meeker of his first voyage on the boat, which he’s named The Pearl Button. He rode the boat from Davenport to Muscatine.

Meeker, a local developer and business owner, asked the City Council in September for permission to bring the boat to town. He is interested in starting a business that will allow the public to rent the boat for weddings, cruises and parties. The Council gave a consensus to move forward and develop a lease agreement for the slip where Meeker will store the boat this winter.

Both Meeker and the Council have made it clear that there is a boatload of work to be done. That work will include locations, specifics associated with operating the boat and remodeling — if it will be harbored here all year long, and parking on the riverfront.

“The easy part is done; it’s here,” Meeker said of his $200,000 investment. “Now we are working on putting together a team to pull off the project. I have a few people who are planning to get licensed to drive and a lot of other fine tuning will be taking place over the next few months.”

The Button Factory and Woodfire Grille will cater meals to the boat, and the ballroom at Pearlview, the former Hotel Muscatine, will also become part of the business conglomeration.

“This is not an easy thing to do, but I am really looking forward to seeing it all pulled together. I think the community will enjoy this boat,” Meeker said. The boat has seating and dining for 115 people.

The crew told Meeker that along the way from Minnesota, many people asked them where the boat was heading and commented about how neat it looks.

“It’s exciting. I am happy to be onboard,” Meeker said.

Reporter contact information

Melissa Regennitter: 563-262-0526

mregennitter@muscatinejournal.com