NYC to remove defunct jail barge from Bronx waterfront, add new marine cargo terminal

A decommissioned barge that once served as a “floating jail” nicknamed “the Boat” will be removed from its current location on the Bronx waterfront to make way for a new marine cargo terminal that New York City officials say will boost economic activity and deliveries.

Officials with Mayor Eric Adams’ administration announced the plans Monday outside the barge — known as the Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center — in Hunts Point, saying they will soon issue a request for proposals for the redevelopment project.

The 625-foot-long floating jail closed in late 2023 after more than three decades in service, having opened in 1992 in what was supposed to be a temporary measure to relieve overcrowding at the Rikers Island complex. But the vessel continued as a jail housing hundreds of detainees at a time, some of whom died there or shortly after being released.

Adams officials said the plans are part of their larger efforts to build a “blue highway” where more cargo is carried on marine and electric vehicles — instead of polluting trucks — for the final stretches of deliveries. Once completed, the Hunts Point Marine Terminal would transfer goods from shipping containers onto barges and ferries. The administration estimates the facility will remove 9,000 trucks a month from city streets, easing congestion.

“The Vernon C. Bain jail barge and all of the destruction that came with it will be removed, and we will give renewed energy and life to this community,” Adams said near the ship on Monday, noting the terminal would be built “in just a few years.”

“This is lowering emissions, bringing jobs and creating a vibrant community here in the Bronx by boosting economic output,” he added before unveiling a rendering of the plans to the audience.

The terminal will produce roughly 400 construction jobs, 100 long-term jobs and $3.9 billion in economic impact over the next 30 years, according to officials. They said it will be one of several hubs in the envisioned blue highway, along with the proposed Brooklyn Marine Terminal redevelopment in Red Hook. The plans for that project are set to be voted on later this month.

The Hunts Point Marine Terminal will now enter the design and planning phase, while the city’s Economic Development Corporation spearheads land remediation at the site to address years of pollution, Adams’ office said. The remediation work is expected to be completed in 2027.

“This barge has been a blight in our community, and I'm just happy to see we are finally getting rid of it,” City Councilmember Rafael Salamanca of the Bronx said.

Catalina Gonella contributed reporting.