Architects and engineers have a way to save Rikers plus provide it with ferry service.

Queens Chronicle

 
Can ferry boats be the way to stop a bruising battle over New York City’s jail problem?

A group of designers and engineers who live and work in Downtown Manhattan unveiled a plan last week that outlines in detail how to rebuild Rikers Island and use secure buses aboard ferries to transport prisoners to and from court.

It is one of the first specific, workable alternatives put forward by opponents to Mayor de Blasio’s sweeping plan to replace Rikers with four borough-based jails, including one in Kew Gardens behind the Queens Criminal Court building.

The City Council has scheduled a crucial vote on the mayor’s jail plan for next Thursday.

At bottom, the 49-page ferry proposal was drawn to upend the mayor’s $11-billion plan — $9 billion for the jails, plus $2 billion to repurpose Rikers as a multiuse city facility — that would take a decade to complete.

Local groups are bitterly opposed to the proposal that calls for the new jails in largely residential neighborhoods, as are criminal-justice reformers who want to see Rikers closed but oppose constructing new lockups.

The reimagining of Rikers calls for the city to demolish “every building” on the island and build a series of smaller, low-rise jails — each with a different level of security.

Renderings for a reconfigured Rikers include open spaces, sports facilities, a family center and a small farm.

Connecting a rebuilt island jail system with the boroughs by ferry “liberates Rikers” from the necessity of moving hundreds of prisoners being held on charges before conviction each day on long bus rides through city streets to the courts, said architect Bill Bialosky, a spokesman for the group.

A group of about a dozen volunteer architects and engineers has been working on the plan for about a month, meeting regularly at the Lin Sing Association, the century-old Chinese-American organization on Mott Street, with community leaders.

 Ferries, said Bialosky, are “the answer to the problem.”

Ferries would also be a good commuting alternative for the families and friends of prisoners.

Why didn't de Blasio and his bullshit city Economic Development Conspirators provide a ferry pier at Rikers in the first place? Well now you know. 

Ferries not the best way to go

From Crains:

New York City has launched its new ferry service.

The NYC Ferry service started Monday with a Rockaway, Queens, route . The area got priority because residents there have some of the city's longest commutes.

The launch also included a previously existing East River route with refurbished ferries.

NYC Ferry will get a South Brooklyn route on June 1. An Astoria, Queens, route begins in August, followed by Lower East Side and Bronx routes in 2018. An estimated 4.6 million passengers a year are expected to use the ferries, which will cut travel times by as much as two-thirds.

From the NY Post:

Lots of transit professionals don’t like ferries. They can’t carry anywhere near as many people as subways can. De Blasio’s ferries will carry 4.6 million people a year, while the subways carry 6 million people a day. Even the Citi Bikes carry 10 million people a year.

Plus, the ferries can’t serve the whole city: Only half a million New Yorkers live within a half-mile of the new landings.

DeBlasio working on $325 million ferry debacle

From the NY Times:

With New York City’s subway trains jammed to capacity and more people than ever pouring into neighborhoods outside Manhattan, Mayor Bill de Blasio is embarking on an ambitious and expensive plan to create a fleet of city-owned ferryboats that would crisscross the surrounding waterways and connect all five boroughs.

At a cost of more than $325 million, Mr. de Blasio’s expansion of ferry service would be one of the biggest bets any city in the world has made on boats as vehicles for mass transit. The mayor predicts that the ferries would carry 4.5 million passengers a year, about twice as many riders as San Francisco’s ferry system handles.

Mr. de Blasio has promised New Yorkers that ferries will start running on three new routes, serving South Brooklyn, and Astoria and the Rockaways in Queens, by the end of June 2017, four months before he would stand for re-election. Additional routes to the Lower East Side of Manhattan and to Soundview in the Bronx will be added in 2018.

“Our aim is to make this thing as big as possible,” said Alicia Glen, the city’s deputy mayor for housing and economic development. “No guts, no glory.”

“We’re still living with the footprint of an early-19th-century transit map that didn’t contemplate the kind of job growth we’re seeing along the waterfront,” Ms. Glen said. The administration, she said, is trying to create a transportation network for “the new New York.”

Job growth along the waterfront? All I see there are giant residential towers filled with yuppies. That's who this is really for. Everyone else will have to do train-ferry-bus or some combination like that, which is impractical.

Nolan wary of LIC ferry dock

From DNA Info:

One of the locations being eyed for a new ferry station in Long Island City has spurred complaints from a local lawmaker, who says building a dock on Center Boulevard would bring unwanted crowds to Gantry Plaza State Park.

Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan penned a letter to the Economic Development Corporation last week, saying a ferry station at the park's northern end "is not the best use of" the public green space.

"The increased traffic through the park may detract from the enjoyment of park visitors and cause undue wear and tear on the park facilities," Nolan said in the Oct. 8 letter.

"How will lines of people be handled at this location? The park should not be a queuing location for the ferry," she continued.

Center Blvd may get ferry dock

From LIC Post:

The Long Island City ferry dock is likely to be located on northwest corner of Center Boulevard, according to representatives from the Economic Development Corp who spoke at a joint Hunters Point Parks Conservancy/Hunters Point Civic Association meeting at the Irish Center last night.

The EDC is currently working on expanding the East River ferry service and aims to introduce a new line by 2017 that will run from Hallets Cove in Astoria to Roosevelt Island, to Long Island City, to East 34th Street and Wall Street in Manhattan.

The Long Island City ferry dock will be in addition to the existing dock at Hunters Point South.

James Wong, director of ferries for the EDC, said the agency is currently evaluating the Center Boulevard site and another on 44th Drive (north of Anable Basin by Water’s Edge), but that the Center Boulevard is likely to be selected.

Jimmy's take on transportation

- Yuppies at Vernon-Jackson need a ferry because the train is too crowded (they already have one)
- New Select Bus Service and Express Service must be created for LIC - even though it is built up because it is one subway stop from Manhattan
- CitiBike!
- Let's not build a new subway line because who cares about future generations?
- Hey, how about a pedestrian/bike only bridge to Manhattan? Because that's feasible.

Deep freeze affecting transportation

From WPIX:

By land and by sea, the weather has been interrupting any trip around New York City for the past few days.

Most subway work is continuing through the weekend. Check mta.info for status updates.

The East River Ferry suspended rides again on Saturday due to ice in the river.

One LIC ferry dock just isn't enough

From the Queens Courier:

The city plans to build a second ferry dock on the Long Island City waterfront to cope with the overwhelmed 7 train and a projected flood of new residents to the neighborhood in years to come.

The new stop will be a completely new dock separate from the existing Hunters Point terminal, which is part of the East River Ferry network, but will be necessary as thousands of new housing units are completed in the area.

The proposed citywide ferry system Mayor de Blasio unveiled earlier this year shows the new ferry stop, called Long Island City – North, which is already receiving cheers from residents and experts, although it won’t be operational until 2017.

It will be beneficial for future residents, especially since the population will balloon in coming years.

More than 10,500 residential units will be built by 2018 around the proposed Long Island City – North ferry landing, according to the Citywide Ferry Study.

Transit advocates don't want more ferries

From Capital New York:

By de Blasio's estimation, New York City is a water-bound metropolis whose rivers and harbors are underutilized resources. It's a view shared by politicians representing water-proximate neighborhoods from the Rockaways to Red Hook to Brooklyn Heights.

Transit advocates, however, greeted his pronouncements tepidly.

"In the transit community that I am a member of, ferries are looked on as being as helpful as rowboats," said Gene Russianoff, staff attorney at the Straphangers Campaign.

Jeffrey Zupan, a senior fellow for transportation at the Regional Plan Association who's a bit more ferry-positive than Russianoff, said that while it was a good thing to explore how best to further deploy ferries, caution is also in order.

"The idea of running ferry service has always been attractive ever since ferries stopped running, when we built all those bridges and tunnels," Zupan said.

But by his count, since 1986, ferry operators have tried roughly 70 different ferry routes to Manhattan, and only about 20 are still in place.

That's because most ferries move relatively few people and generally require more per-rider government subsidy than subway and bus operations.

In fact, the de Blasio administration made that very argument last year, when it decided to cancel ferry service to the Rockaways because it cost too much per rider.

State of City speech: More ferries coming to Queens

From DNA Info:

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced expanded ferry service across the five boroughs in his State of the City address Tuesday, saying the rides will improve transportation as the city continues to grow.

The new ferry routes include Astoria, southern Brooklyn, the Lower East Side, Soundview in The Bronx and Rockaway Beach — and will cost the same amount as a subway ride, he announced.

The ferries will be run and funded by the city, and are expected to begin in 2017, a source said.

The mayor's office said the ferry expansion — which was first reported by DNAinfo New York Tuesday morning — was a way to accommodate the city's growing population.

It will cost $55 million, with plans to expand to Coney Island and Stapleton in Staten Island once more money is secured, the city said.

The city had already announced plans last November for a dock at the Astoria Cove development, which will be funded by the mayor's office, the Queens Borough President Melinda Katz's office and City Councilman Costa Constantinides.

Meanwhile, Peter Koo and Paul Vallone want some ferry love thrown their way.

Surprise, surprise: Council now loves Astoria Cove project

From the NY Observer:

The massive Astoria Cove project is a major stride closer to launching today — as is long-proposed ferry boat service for the Queens waterfront area.

After months of negotiating and hours of backroom deliberation, the City Council’s powerful Land Use Committee today stamped its approval on the controversial 1,700-unit luxury development–permitted that it set aside 468 units for low- and middle-income tenants, hire unionized construction workers and building staff, include a co-operative supermarket, pay for improvements to local parks and a senior center and commit $5 million to the construction of a ferry dock.

“I am happy to say we have an agreement here at Astoria Cove that truly integrates this development into our community,” said Councilman Costa Constantinides, who represents the area where the development will take place, but does not sit on the Land Use Committee. “This deal is historic and we’ve changed the way development happens.”

The controversial luxury Queens waterfront project–which also includes retail and a new school–encountered considerable resistance over developer Alma Realty’s initial reluctance to hire union labor and to set aside more than a quarter of the new residences for low- and middle-income tenants. Mr. Constantinides–joined by Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Queens Borough President Melinda Katz–had led the opposition and the arm-twisting, and the Council almost always defers on land use matters to the wishes of the local representative.

Mayor Bill de Blasio, however, was a supporter of the project–seeing it as a test case for his new mandatory inclusionary zoning policy, which requires developers to insert affordable units into new developments as a precondition for construction. Previously, the city had relied on subsidies and tax abatements to entice companies into adding below-market rate units.

Committee Chairman David Greenfield noted that the 27 percent of units set aside for below-market rents is the largest affordable housing percentage agreement in city history.

However, Alma's history with regard to affordable housing is a joke.

Rockaway homeless shelter nixed by DHS

From Capital New York:

One day after Councilman Donovan Richards asked the de Blasio administration to reconsider opening a men's homeless shelter in his Rockaway district, the Department of Homeless Services said it has scrapped the plan.

“After hearing the special concerns of Rockaway residents, D.H.S. will not be siting a second shelter on the peninsula,” Chris Miller, a spokesman for D.H.S. said in a statement.

In a letter to the administration this week, Richards cited concerns over the proposed shelter’s proximity to three schools. More specifically, he said his Queens district's “food, transit and infrastructure desert” did not have the resources to serve an increase in population.

From the Daily News:

The city had sought to transform the former Rockaway Manor on Beach 8th St. into a shelter for 100 adult men, but the proposal infuriated local officials who pointed out a new shelter was just been opened on the peninsula.

The former Daytop Center in Arverne started taking in homeless families over the summer.

Queens elected officials, including Borough President Melinda Katz, Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder and City Councilman Donovan Richards, met with Mayor de Blasio and aides at City Hall to discuss the proposed homeless shelter and the Rockaway ferry, which is slated to make its last run.

“We are extremely disappointed at the decision to discontinue ferry service to the Rockaways,” the lawmakers said in a statement. “We will continue to fight for a ferry that the Rockaways deserves and need to connect the peninsula to lower Manhattan. We are, however, very thankful that Mayor De Blasio has decided to withdraw plans to place a homeless shelter on Beach 8th Street.

So a couple of rookie pols got a homeless shelter in their district nixed, while in Glendale and Elmhurst, the pols who have decades of experience between them can't (or more likely won't) do the same for their constituents?

Very interesting!

Big men dream big

From the Observer:

Appearing with Vice President Joseph Biden Jr. today, Gov. Andrew Cuomo vowed to dramatically reshape the city’s two aging airports and turn two other little-known airports in major economic hubs.

The vice president and governor touted the value of infrastructure investment, with Mr. Biden providing the sweeping rhetoric and Mr. Cuomo the nuts-and-bolts of what could come to the airports: a Long Island Rail Road and ferry link to LaGuardia Airport, tax free zones at small airports in the city’s suburbs and a speedier transit option for John F. Kennedy Airport on the southern tip of Queens.

Mr. Cuomo was vague on details. Tax free zones, a favorite tool of Mr. Cuomo’s, would be established at Stewart and Republic Airports to encourage business investment and take on some of the traffic that LaGuardia and JFK now absorb. He touted the idea of a rail link, with no apparent means of funding it, to LaGuardia, along with a ferry. He would also increase the speed and efficiency of transportation to JFK, now served by a rail link from an LIRR hub in Jamaica, Queens, and add food and retail options to the airport.

He did not tell reporters how the cash-strapped state, Port Authority or Metropolitan Transportation Authority would pay for these upgrades, but told reporters all options “were on the table,” including new tolls on bridges.

Goldfeder wants SI Ferry charge to subsidize Rockaway ferry

From AMNY:

The Staten Island Ferry's fare-free service is seen as both a critical transportation link that brings transit-starved residents to a paid subway ride and as an unfair freebie to its critics.
Now, there are calls to hit tourists with a $4 fare to fund transportation in the city from Queens advocates trying to keep ferry service in the Rockaways past October.

"Staten Island is already receiving a generous subsidy, while Rockaway is still desperately in need of permanent ferry service and better transportation options," Queens Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder said in a statement.

Just 15% of ferry riders in Staten Island live outside of the city, according to a recent Independent Budget Office analysis of the idea. The city paid an average of $5.75 a passenger this year.

Charging for rides could generate $35.5 million in net revenue over 15 years with a stand-alone fare system; letting riders pay with a MetroCard would generate $67.4 million over the same period if the MTA paid the city for each swipe of an unlimited-ride.

Rockaway ferry funding nixed

From the Daily News:

The Rockaway Ferry will be docked this fall after failing to make the cut in the city’s 2015 budget Tuesday morning.

The city’s temporary funding for the ferry will be slashed in October after Queens Borough President Melinda Katz tried to convince City Council to earmark $8 million from the $75 billion budget to fund permanent ferry service.

The money went toward the illegal alien ID program instead. (You folks down there don't vote the right way.)

Ferry fail

From Capital New York:

A Seastreak ferry ran aground in Jamaica Bay this afternoon, forcing the fire department to remove all 29 passengers, none of whom were injured, according to an FDNY spokesman and news reports.

The ferry was not part of the regular Rockaways service, but was a private ride organized by a local ferry advocate to explore ways of expanding service, possibly to JFK Airport.

The ferry ride included, among others, representatives from the offices of Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder and Queens borough president Melinda Katz.

"There was no big thump," said Goldfeder, who wasn't on the boat, but spoke to people who were. He said passengers didn't even realize they were stuck until they tried moving.

Goldfeder said the incident shouldn't be used to paint ferry service as unreliable or prone to delays.

Council members propose ferry to NE Queens

From the Times Ledger:

City Councilman Paul Vallone (D-Bayside) is one of three representatives in Queens asking the city to consider expanding ferry service to two locations in the northeast part of the borough.

Vallone wrote a joint letter with his Council colleagues Julissa Ferreras (D-East Elmhurst) and Peter Koo (D-Flushing) addressed to Hannah Henn, director of ferry service for the city, asking the city Economic Development Corp. to conduct a pilot program that would test out the long-term viability of offering permanent ferry service from Manhattan to Citi Field in Flushing and to Fort Totten in Bayside.

The letter cites a variety of factors the Council members say support the idea of instituting a new route from Manhattan to both locations.

“We believe a combination of factors will lead to an overwhelming success of the proposed sites: the demand from local communities, economic viability, lack of transportation alternatives provided to northeast Queens and the availability of existing docks at the proposed sites,” the letter said.

The letter, officially sent from Vallone’s office, refers to a 2013 Citywide Ferry Study completed by the EDC, which mentioned Citi Field as a potential stop along a ferry route because of its vicinity to Flushing Meadows Corona Park and the World’s Fair Marina.

Divorce Fast
The letter also states that ferry service to Citi Field and Fort Totten would help alleviate some of the overcrowding on the No. 7 train, the only line to run from Manhattan to the northeastern part of the borough.

Jimmy feels for the tower people

From CBS New York:

Officials in Queens have called on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to do more to help Long Island City businesses in the face of planned weekend shutdowns on the 7 line this year.

The MTA announced last month that it will shut down the line between Queensboro Plaza and Times Square for 13 weekends between the end of this month and July.

The authority said the shutdowns are necessary for maintenance and signal work.

Queens officials argue that halting the line for such an extended period of time will isolate residents in the neighborhood.

The city councilman and other Queens officials met with MTA officials on Thursday to discuss ways in which the authority could help local businesses while the 7 line is down.

Van Bramer said he wants the MTA to subsidize East River ferry service to Manhattan and allow customers to use MetroCards while train service is down. He said ferry service would be just a few minutes door-to-door from Long Island City to Midtown and that it would only cost $4 a ride.

Officials also want the MTA to provide express bus service to and from Manhattan, a request that has been made before, as well as a campaign promoting Long Island City businesses while the line is halted.

Whatever happened to caveat emptor? This work has been going on for decades, it's not something new. No one was crying before LIC got yuppified. "Halting the line for such an extended period of time will isolate residents in the neighborhood..." Good, so they can spend their money at local businesses.

Rockaway ferry extended until May

From Eyewitness News:

The commuter ferry service between the Rockaways and Wall Street was supposed to finish up at the end of the month, but Mayor Bill de Blasio has extend that deadline in a push to make the waterway transport permanent.

New York City is now looking for a contractor to provide the ferries, which began running after the A train was knocked out of service by Superstorm Sandy.

The $2 ride has proven very popular, and it takes just one-third of the time that the subway ride takes.

Service runs from Beach 108th Street and Beach Channel Drive in the Rockaways, then stops at the 58th Street landing in the Brooklyn Army Terminal before continuing to Lower Manhattan and East 34th Street in Midtown.

The extension until May, with an option to extend until August, will allow the city's Economic Development Corporation to issue a request for proposals to determine the viability of long-term service and identify an operator for the line.

The service, operated by Seastreak, will continue to run on its current schedule and charge $3.50 per ride.

So it will be extended, but cost more? Sounds like a winner...

Hipster boat vacated by FDNY

From Eyewitness News:

A boat in Brooklyn was vacated by firefighters Friday after a tip that people were illegally on board.

FDNY searched the boat and found evidence that people were living on the boat, and using it as a work space.

Firefighters went to the boat at around 11:30 a.m. after receiving the tip. They found 10 people on board at the time.

The boat, docked near Morgan Avenue and Stagg Street in Bushwick, has been deemed a hazard and vacated.

An area was carved into the hull of the boat and separated into nine bedrooms.

Artists and sculptures were using the boat as a work space. There were paint cans, gasoline canisters, and candles on board.

There was also a hot tub and an area on the deck being used as a pool.

Water and electricity were running to the boat from a nearby, vacant lot.

The boat was not registered with the Coast Guard.

I wonder if they realize the history of the spot they're inhabiting...