Hoboken Protesters Rally Against Ferry Depot At Waterfront: WATCH

HOBOKEN, NJ — Hundreds of Hoboken residents, outdoor enthusiasts and community members rallied against NY Waterway’s controversial plan to build a ferry maintenance facility on the waterfront last weekend, marching to the proposed development site at the Union Dry Dock in a show of solidarity.

On Saturday, participants met at Pier A Park and marched up the Hoboken waterfront to the Union Dry Dock/Maxwell Place Park at 10th and Sinatra Drive. (Watch videos of the march below)

The rally was spearheaded by the Fund for a Better Waterfront, Hoboken Cove Community Boathouse and Resilience Paddle Sports.

NY Waterway – which owns the property – plans to build a ferry maintenance and refueling depot there, claiming it will enhance transportation, public security and property values on the Hudson River waterfront. But some city officials and activists have vocally opposed the project, which one community member likened to "putting a Port Authority bus station in the middle of a playground."

The City of Hoboken issued a stop work order to NY Waterway to halt ferry maintenance operations at the site last month.

• See related article: Hoboken Issues Stop Work Order To NY Waterway At Dry Dock
• See related article: Ferry Company Gets Permit For Controversial Hoboken Depot
• See related article: Leave Dry Dock Alone, NY Waterway Founder Says

Here’s what motivated the March 9 rally, according to organizers:

“The Union Dry Dock site is at risk. The multi-year effort to make it an integral part of Hoboken’s waterfront park would be forever lost if Governor Phil Murphy decides that it should be the home of a ferry maintenance/refueling facility. This industrial use is incompatible with the kayaking, fishing, skateboarding, jogging, cycling and other public recreational uses at this site as well as the residential housing nearby.”

Hudson County View posted the following video taken at the rally (see more of their coverage here). Check out additional footage from the protest below.

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