No Man is an Island, but a Reef? Maybe. November 16, 2001 7:48 am EST KEY WEST, Fla. (Reuters) - For a $2 million minimum bid on the Internet auction house eBay, one lucky philanthropist can win the right to name an artificial reef planned for the Florida Keys. The nonprofit Artificial Reefs of the Keys is auctioning off the right to name a new artificial reef, to be created by the sinking next year of a decommissioned military ship about 6.5 miles southeast of Key West. The project aims to protect the world's third-largest living coral reef -- located off the island of Key West on Florida's southern tip -- by providing an alternative site for diving enthusiasts, the nonprofit group said. "Obviously, these are tough economic times, and this is certainly not for everybody," acknowledged Joe Weatherby, the group's president. "The person who bids on our project is interested in having a name associated with the environment and protecting the only living coral reef in the country. ... It's the same type of person who builds a library or wing on a hospital." The 10-day auction began Nov. 13, but as of Thursday, no one had entered a bid, Weatherby said. At more than 13,000 tons, 520 feet) long and 10 stories tall, the decommissioned Gen. Hoyt S. Vandenberg will be the largest ship "ever intentionally sunk" for the purpose of creating a dive destination. The vessel was commissioned in 1944 as the Gen. Harry Taylor, a troop transport ship, the first ship sailing back into New York's harbor, carrying U.S. soldiers who thought they were bound for Japan, just as World War II ended. In 1963, it was renamed the Vandenberg and used as an Air Force missile-tracking ship.