Groton - Only one potential operator responded to a request for proposals to run a water taxi service across the Thames River this summer.

"We had a disappointing response," Groton City Mayor Marian Galbraith said during Wednesday's meeting of the steering committee for the Thames River Heritage Park. She said the proposal was incomplete and that the submitter, who she declined to identify, has been asked for more information.

The water taxi would ferry visitors between New London and Groton to access sites the historic sites that would be part of the park. Galbraith said if the applicant's proposal is not feasible, the steering committee may seek to partner with another organization to run the taxi service.

A bill to provide $100,000 in state funding for the water taxi is pending in the General Assembly. In addition, the proposed municipal budgets for Groton Town and Groton City both include $10,000 to support water taxi operations, and New London Mayor Daryl Justin Finizio has also put $10,000 for the taxi in his budget proposal.

- Judy Benson