Ferry Terminal Bid Approved, Project to Begin Soon

The multi-million dollar Glen Cove Ferry Terminal is one step closer to reality after the City Council awarded a bid to start construction on the project at Tuesday night's meeting.

Chesterfield Associates of Westhampton Beach received a contract for waterborne and site improvements – more or less to get the project off the ground.

After placing the lowest bid of roughly $11 million, the bid covers initial project plans including building docks, utilities, drainage and the foundations of the facility.

The first phase of the four phase project will begin in late April or early May and take between 15 and 18 months to complete, Mayor Ralph Suozzi said.

It was a sigh of relief for the council members as each one of them voted in support of choosing Chesterfield, and a few members expressed gratitude toward Suozzi and his staff for securing funds for the project.

"[It took] a lot of twists and turns, but you did a great job in securing a very reasonable and fair bid," said Councilman Michael Famiglietti in addressing the mayor.

According to Suozzi, Glen Cove received additional federal stimulus funds for the project, on top of $8 million secured last summer.

Suozzi pinned the final price tag of the four phase project at $15 million.

"It's pretty amazing that we were able to work this out," said Councilwoman Delia DeRiggi-Whitton. "It's a great start and I think it's going to be a great project."

The terminal will consist of a parking facility, the terminal itself, a restaurant and catering center, and operational facilities.

First conceptualized in 2004, the project received attention for becoming the first commuter ferry on Long Island to service Manhattan since 2001. Other proposed destinations of the ferry could include LaGuardia Airport and Connecticut.

Currently, Long Islanders can only take ferries from Orient Point to Rhode Island and from Port Jefferson to Connecticut.

A proud Suozzi said the project would create local construction jobs now and permanent jobs once the terminal opens.

Suozzi said the extra funds came from other stimulus projects around the state that didn't pan out.

"It's quite possible that this project is the only one of the stimulus projects that survived on Long Island," Suozzi said at the meeting. "Some are being fought for still, and some already lost."

On the Agenda:

The council also approved plans for weekly car cruise nights held by the fire department, and OK'd Nassau Country Club to hold a fireworks display on April 11. Suozzi added an "emergency" item to the agenda to declare April 1 "Census 2010 Awareness Day" in Glen Cove.