Does The Coney Island Ferry Have A Location Problem?
Dakota Fanning puking up hot dogs after a spin in the teacups with Brittany Murphy in Uptown Girls. The Maisel clan arguing atop the ferris wheel in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Taylor Swift crooning about “the fast times, the bright lights, the merry go,” of the boardwalk in her song Coney Island.
The Brooklyn neighborhood of Coney Island has inspired a slew of iconic media moments, and for good reason. Home to Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs, the Wonder Wheel of Luna Park, and of course, the beach, Coney Island hosts a myriad of tourist attractions that bring in five million visitors annually.
But for decades, the only public means of getting to the oceanside neighborhood were by bus or subway, which take at least an hour from Manhattan and over two hours from the Bronx. Car rides are similarly daunting, taking well over an hour with traffic.
Now, the city is looking to transform the trip to Coney Island with a new ferry route that would take a mere 30 minutes from downtown Manhattan, with a stop in Bay Ridge. The ferry is operated by NYC’s Economic Development Corporation (EDC) — a nonprofit organization that encourages economic growth — and connects the boroughs of NYC via its surrounding waterways. Each trip cost $2.75, the same rate as the subways and buses operated by the MTA.
The new ferry will be stationed in Coney Island Creek and is scheduled to begin service later this year, after being delayed to protect the area’s horseshoe crab population. Coney Island Creek is a public waterfront park located on the northern bay of Coney Island, on the opposite side of the island from the amusement district. Preparation for the ferry includes dredging the ferry route to make room for the boats and accompanying landing.
Coney Islanders and tourists alike have mixed feelings about the new ferry route. Ideally, the ferry would offer a convenient way to transport commuters and visitors to Coney Island, which could boost the local economy. On the other hand, some community members are concerned that the ferry route will damage the creek’s wildlife population — not to mention its inconvenient location for tourists. The Coney Island ferry is meant to benefit the neighborhood’s residents, but choosing to place the ferry landing on Coney Island Creek might do more harm than good.
One of the main arguments Coney Islanders have against the ferry’s location is the potential environmental harm. Dredging the waters tends to stir up carcinogens such as mercury and lead that are trapped in the creek bed, according to The New York Times. Already, while dredging in preparation for the ferry, barges leaked into the water and caused pollution, suggested a community member at a Coney Island board meeting. In November of 2021, a subcontractor was caught on video not following dredging safety protocols and was subsequently fired from his job, according to an email released by the EDC’s coordinator.
“NYCEDC takes environmental concerns seriously. Construction could not proceed without full approval and permitting by NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and Army Corps of Engineers,” said an EDC spokesperson via email. “All of the work is subject to monitoring by federal and state regulators, and we welcome their oversight, so work is done safely and correctly.”
Part of the dredging needed to complete the new ferry will take place next to Calvert Vaux Park, a former industrial dump, according to an article by the Gotham Gazette. An Environmental Impact Statement from the city revealed that samples in the area contained concerning amounts of contaminants such as arsenic, lead, and mercury. These contaminants are associated with harm to aquatic life.
Not only would the release of carcinogens potentially harm Coney Island residents, but it could also have detrimental effects on the area’s wildlife. Coney Island Creek is visited by around 250 unique bird species and hosts a large population of horseshoe crabs. Environmental harm caused by dredging and the ferries themselves have the potential to harm the horseshoe crab population and damage the creek’s ecosystem, according to the Times.
Residents of Coney Island protested the location of the ferry landing, including Coney Island History Project Executive Director Charles Denson. Denson, 68, posted a Youtube video stating that residents were surprised by the 2019 decision to place the ferry in the creek instead of on the ocean side of Coney Island, such as the Steeplechase Pier. The video mentions that most other NYC ferry docks are located in previously industrial areas, such as Pier 11 or the East River Ferry dock. Instead, the Coney Island Ferry will be the only one built on a small beach.
Other members of the Coney Island community are advocating via Facebook group for an oceanside ferry location as opposed to the northern area of the Coney Island Creek. However, the EDC explained the reason for the ferry’s bayside location.
“A ferry landing on the ocean side of Coney Island was not recommended for many reasons, including stronger currents and wakes on the open ocean, unsafe docking conditions, and reliability of service,” the EDC wrote in an email statement. “The location selected and constructed went through a robust environmental review and permitting process with federal, state, and local regulators and agencies.”
Coney Islanders For An Oceanside Ferry member and former Community Board district manager Craig Hammerman, 57, rejects this assertion. He suggested that an oceanside ferry is possible, albeit more expensive.
“It’s only unsafe if it’s an underfunded project,” said Hammerman. He explained that because the oceanside waters are rougher, it would require more careful navigation and the construction of a sheltered landing to protect the ferry. “It would cost the city more — we understand that. We believe that it is a much more viable long-term solution to address some of these great policy challenges that Coney Island faces.”
Aside from environmental impacts, some say there is another major reason for the ferry landing to be located oceanside. While the Coney Island Ferry could provide easy travel for tourists, the landing on Coney Island Creek is well over a mile away from major attractions such as Luna Park. The 30-plus minute walk from the ferry landing to Coney Island’s amusement district makes taking the ferry inaccessible for many visitors, who may opt to drive instead given the inconvenient location.
Former 47th district councilman Mark Treyger stated at public meetings that he would fund a shuttle between the ferry landing and the amusement district, but he is no longer in office and no resources have been dedicated to this shuttle service thus far.
Coney Island resident and S&P Global editor Kouichi Shirayanagi, 38, shared his frustration with the city government and its decision to place the ferry in an inconvenient and disruptive location.
“They should build ferries that meet the needs of the neighborhood where they are,” said Shirayanagi. “The city should listen to us and accommodate our needs of having a ferry on the ocean side instead of this pristine recreational area.”
Despite these complaints, other residents are pushing for the community to accept the construction at Coney Island Creek, as the alternative would likely be no ferry at all. Retired soldier Daniel Ioannou, a lifelong Coney Island resident and founder of the pro-ferry activist group Coney Islanders 4 Ferry, insists that Coney Islanders opposed to the ferry’s location should let the professionals involved in the ferry landing’s construction do their jobs.
“This isn’t the first time [the EDC] has built a ferry landing, they’ve done it 20 plus times,” said Ioannou. “If you have no experience building a ferry landing, how are you going to tell people where a ferry should go?”
Ioannou acknowledges that the ferry location isn’t ideal, but he believes advocating for its removal is counterproductive. Instead, he urges residents and officials to maximize the current location by creating more parking and enforcing nearby security.“There’s no perfect spot anywhere on Coney Island. If there was a perfect spot, it would have been built years ago,” he said. “It’s coming, what can we do to make it better?”
With the New York winter beginning to defrost, bird populations and families alike will flock to Coney Island Creek to swim, spend time outdoors, and soak in the peaceful ocean views. Great blue herons flaunt their vast wingspan in the warmer months, and children play in the rolling dunes.
“Urbanization has destroyed so many pristine environmental places,” said Shirayanagi. “I want to see my birds, I want to see horseshoe crabs. I want my son to grow up here and enjoy the environment there. Quite frankly, the city’s going to destroy that.”
Ioannou sees things differently. “The same people that are critiquing the ferry, I bet you in six months I’ll see them on there,” he said. “All aboard, we’re going to be getting to the city in record time. I can’t wait.”
