Grand entryway to Whitehall

Located at the southernmost tip of Manhattan, the Whitehall Ferry Terminal is shaping up to be one of the City's most eye-catching transportation centers.  The terminal has been undergoing reconstruction since June 2000, and the changes are intended to give the 70,000 Staten Island Ferry riders who move through it each day a more attractive and better functioning commuter hub.

The refurbishment of the four-story, 200,000-square-foot structure, with its high ceilings, wide esplanades, and central ramps and escalators, promises to result in such a welcoming spot that many New Yorkers may choose to visit just to soak up some maritime ambiance--without even setting sail. 

"The new Whitehall will be a dramatic change from the old look," says Dolores Barbieri, the Department of Transportation's (DOT) assistant commissioner for facilities and ferry terminal construction.  "The new space will be constructed almost entirely of steel and glass, which will maximize the views of Lower Manhattan and New York Harbor.  It will let in lots of natural light and be very open, giving terminal visitors the sense that they're already on the water."

The New York Economic Development Corporation is leading the project, which will cost more than $135 million, in a joint effort with the DOT.  Designed by Schwartz Architects, the Whitehall Terminal is slated for completion by fall 2004, and has faced only one major delay as a result of 9-11. 

New facade of ferry terminal

Most importantly, ferry service has continued uninterrupted 24 hours a day, seven days a week throughout the rebuilding.  "We probably could have finished this project in half the time if we could have just closed the terminal," Barbieri explains.  "But ferries have continued to operate on time, everyday, with the same high volume of passengers constantly moving on and off the boats."

The new Whitehall will make bus and subway access more convenient for the crowds of commuters going to and from Staten Island.  The construction also will reconfigure the adjacent Peter Minuit Plaza, which will serve as an open space that ushers pedestrians directly into the grand terminal entrance.

Originally built in 1907, Whitehall was reconstructed in 1954.  A major fire in 1991 led to the current rebuilding, which complements the reconstruction of Staten Island's St. George Ferry Terminal.  Barbieri says the two terminals will feature similar architecture and design.  "They're going to be such nice structures--we hope they will make water transportation more appealing to regular passengers and visitors," she says.  "They'll be the kind of spaces where people will want to go just to have lunch."