A deal has been reached on a coveted piece of real estate on the Hudson River that had been the source of a court battle between the city of Hoboken and ferry company NY Waterway.
State and local officials announced Thursday that Hoboken will pay NY Waterway $18.5 million for the 3-acre parcel just north of the center of the city.
The site was part of land once bought by Dutchman Peter Stuyvesant in the 1600s from the Lenni Lenape tribe, and it was later a shipping hub and a port of embarkation for World War I troops before being used as a ferry maintenance facility.
NY Waterway, which operates commuter ferries between New Jersey and New York City, planned to use it for maintenance when it bought the site for roughly $12 million in 2017.
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Hoboken officials envisioned the spot as the final link to the city's waterfront park system and claimed the maintenance facility would have harmful environmental effects. In 2019, city officials threatened to use eminent domain to acquire the land for about $13 million. NY Waterway appraised the property at $24 million.
NY Waterway will now explore expanding its current operations in nearby Weehawken, according to Thursday's announcement.
In a statement, Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla called the agreement “one of the most consequential in our city's history” that would “dramatically improve Hoboken’s waterfront for generations to come.”
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Armand Pohan, president and CEO of NY Waterway, said in a statement, “Hoboken and New York Waterway are too important to each other to remain at odds. It is time for all of us to resolve our issues and move forward.”
The $18.5 million deal must still be approved by the city council next month.
