BY ROSE ADAMS
Call it pier pressure!
Kings County anglers are
casting scorn on a city scheme
to construct a new ferry terminal
at the Kaiser Park pier,
claiming the sea traffi c and
the hordes of tourists would
ruin their beloved fi shing
spot.
“That pier has been a steadfast
part of our community for
so many years,” said Keith
Suber, a Coney Island resident
who joined a demonstration at
the pier on July 27, where he
touted a sign that read “Fishing,
not ferries!”
The NYC Economic Development
Corporation — the
quasi government agency
overseeing Mayor de Blasio’s
heavily subsidized ferry system
— has spent months debating
where to place a terminal
for the new Coney Island ferry ,
which will transport riders
from Coney Island to Lower
Manhattan. On Wednesday,
a spokeswoman for NYCEDC
Place to Coney Island Ave turning down towards the beach.
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claimed that the corporation
is still deciding between two
locations: the Kaiser Park pier,
and a spot two blocks away on
W. 33rd Street.
However, locals now believe
that EDC has already
settled on the Kaiser Park location,
claiming loose lipped
contractors with the city’s
chosen construction outfi t,
Skanska, recently discussed
the plan with locals while surveying
the park, where they
claimed the city had already
awarded them a contract to
build out the ferry stop at the
pier.
“He said, ‘We have a contract
to build a ferry terminal
and pier. It’s not going to be on
33rd Street,’” said Coney Island
resident Charles Denson,
relaying what he claims the
Skanska employee told him.
Economic Development
Corporation spokeswoman
Stephanie Baez said the
agency had not awarded Skanska
any contract related to the
PIER PRESSURE: Coney Islanders gathered on the Kaiser Park pier to
protest the new ferry terminal that NYCEDC might build there.
Photo by Trey Pentecost
Coney Island ferry stop, let
alone for the Kaiser Park Pier
location, but Denson’s claims
have nonetheless outraged
community members, particularly
locals who use the pier to
fi sh and whose children swim
in the area.
“They lied to us about it,”
said Harry Faulkner, a longtime
Coney Islander, regarding
claims that the city hadn’t
fi nalized the location.
Community members and
borough anglers have enjoyed
the pier at Kaiser Park as a
fi shing spot for years, and locals
claim the area, which is
especially well-suited for beginners,
was where they and
their children learned the
sport.
“We use it for basic crabbing,”
said Faulkner. “Kids go
out there and we teach them
how to fi sh.”
Other locals said that
handicapped residents in
NYCHA’s nearby Gravesend
Houses frequent the spot be-
‘They lied to us’
Coney Islanders protest city’s
ferry plan at Kaiser Park pier
cause of its wide, accessible
pathway, and that some
groups use the area for religious
ceremonies.
Denson argued that a ferry
would threaten the wildlife in
Coney Island Creek, where the
Kaiser Park Pier stands. The
creek, once a dumping ground
for raw sewage and industrial
waste, is now a horseshoe
crab spawning area, and the
surrounding dunes contain a
fragile ecosystem.
“It’s a beautiful, restored
natural area,” Denson said.
Saturday’s protesters don’t
like the E. 33rd Street location
either, claiming ferry traffi c
would overburden the residential
neighborhood, and that
the city should dock it’s ferry
boats on the other side of the
peninsula near the Coney Island
amusement district.
Reps for EDC have stated
previously that they chose to
pursue a docking point along
Coney Island’s northern coast
in an effort to serve local residents
over tourists .
But they do like the idea of a
Coney Island ferry stop, which
can make the trip to Manhattan
in 37 minutes, and only
costs $2.75 thanks to hefty government
subsidies, according
to Denson.
“I want the ferry,” he said.
“I think it’s a good idea.”
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