SCHUMER PUSHES FOR FERRY SERVICE FROM GLEN COVE TO YANKEE STADIUM AND CITI FIELD; ASKS NY TEAMS TO CONSIDER INCENTIVE PACKAGES, LIKE THOSE OFFERED WITH MTA-LIRR, FOR BASEBALL FANS TO TAKE FERRY TO GAMES
Schumer Helped Secure Over $12 Million in Federal Funds for Glen Cove Ferry Terminal; Asks Yankees and Mets to Offer Incentive Packages, Like Ticket Discounts, So Baseball Fans Leave Their Cars at Home
Direct Ferry Service from Glen Cove Would Provide Easy, Recreational Commute to Stadiums and Ease Traffic on Clogged Long Island Highways
Schumer: Partnership with Mets and Yankees Would be Homerun for Long Island
United States Senator Charles E. Schumer, joined by Glen Cove Mayor Ralph Suozzi, at the Glen Cove Ferry Terminal and Boat Basin today, announced that he is reaching out to the New York Yankees and New York Mets to work with the City of Glen Cove to entice baseball fans to use the new Glen Cove Ferry to travel to games. The Glen Cove Ferry Terminal is a federally funded mass transit project. Schumer, in an effort to encourage baseball patrons to leave their cars at home and take the ferry, is asking New York's two Major League Baseball teams to consider offering ticket incentives for baseball fans to use the ferry to get to the game.
"While we seek to get cars off the road and have more travelers use mass transit, we need to do everything we can to entice Long Island residents to leave their cars at home," said Schumer. "A partnership between the Yankees and Mets and the Glen Cove Ferry would be a homerun for baseball fans throughout Long Island."
Schumer is asking the teams to consider putting in place an incentive package, such as discounted tickets to particular games, for baseball fans that use the ferry. Such a package for a Glen Cove Ferry would go a long way toward alleviating Long Island traffic, attract additional ridership, and be an attractive incentive to potential ferry operators.
A similar incentive package currently exists between the Mets and New York City Transit, the Long Island Railroad and Metro-North Railroad. Mets fans can receive $10 off tickets on Mezzanine Reserved and Upper Box seats or $5 off Upper Reserved seats to 20 select games this season when taking these mass transit options to baseball games.
In its 2005 Long Island Sound Waterborne Transportation Plan (LISWTP), the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council (NYMTC) identified the Glen Cove Ferry as a viable regional launch for destination points to the west. Since that time, Schumer has helped secure over $12 million in federal funds for the project.
The funding is being used to construct the ferry terminal building, and provide marine and waterside improvements, public access and pedestrian amenities. NYMTC noted that, ferry services operating in Long Island Sound currently carry more than 4,000,000 passenger trips and nearly 2,000,000 vehicle trips per year, making the region one of the top ten ferry markets in the country.
Ferry service to New York baseball stadiums from Manhattan is currently offered by New York Waterways, Seastreak, and New York Water Taxi and many of them provide food and beverage service without the need to drive. Ferry service from Glen Cove to the stadiums could provide the same services and could boost economic activity in the Glen Cove downtown waterfront area.
"The ferry terminal and docking facility at Glen Cove Creek is well positioned to handle a variety of uses as they relate to commuting, tourism and recreational components. An incentivized linkage to Citi Field and Yankee Stadium is one of many possible regional destinations and I am thankful to Senator Schumer for his continued support," said Mayor Suozzi.
"With very little investment from the Yankees and the Mets, we have the potential to get thousands of cars off the road, attract multiple ferry operators, and provide a safe and scenic trip for families and friends who want to catch a convenient ride to the ballgame," added Schumer.
A copy of the letters Schumer sent to the Yankees and the Mets can be found below.
Mr. Felix Lopez
Senior Vice President
New York Yankees
Dear Mr. Lopez,
I write to request your participation in exploring an exciting new partnership between the Yankees, the City of Glen Cove, and the thousands of baseball fans across Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Over the past few years, I have worked tirelessly with the City of Glen Cove to identify and secure the resources needed to construct a new state-of-the-art ferry terminal for the Glen Cove Waterfront. Construction is currently underway and I am working with the Mayor to advance new ferry transportation alternatives and attractions. Today, I strongly believe the New York Yankees have a unique opportunity to partner with the City to help start a pilot ferry service for Yankees fans, a no-traffic luxury service alternative to the highly-congested Long Island highway system.
On June 1, 2010 the City of Glen Cove broke ground on the first phase of the ferry terminal project, which will serve Glen Cove and North Shore residents for commuting and recreational uses. This is a monumental step forward in the effort to clean-up Glen Cove Creek, revitalize the City's downtown, and bring additional economic activity to the region. The Glen Cove Ferry Terminal and Boat Basin is a federally funded project involving the design and construction of a ferry terminal building, marine and waterside improvements, public access, pedestrian spaces and a parking facility. When completed, the terminal will be a great public amenity for the City of Glen Cove that links the City to new regional markets, removes cars from the roadway system and establishes a unique public realm on the waterfront that serves to anchor the redevelopment of the area. In a preliminary study, the City identified Yankee Stadium as a potential attraction for ferry service.
As you know, Long Island is home to a significant concentration of loyal New York Yankees fans. On any given day of a Yankees home game, Long Islanders traveling by car to the Stadium expect the hassle of delays and traffic, a staple of New York City's complex network of highways. In an effort to relieve some of that burden and promote mass transit, the Yankees have partnered with the MTA and Long Island Rail Road to encourage the use of trains for home games. This effort reduces the cost of games for middle-class Long Island families, promotes the use of mass transit, and cuts down on car traffic on Long Island's highways.
The City is currently near completion of a soon-to-be-released Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for private ferry service based out of the new terminal in Glen Cove Creek. I implore you to begin a dialogue with the City of Glen Cove in their effort to attract new regional recreational service to the Ferry Terminal. I strongly believe that there is a ripe opportunity for the Yankees to negotiate an arrangement with the City on discounted ticket packages or other amenities for new ferry riders. This could potentially make the coming RFEI much more attractive to potential service providers and stimulate demand on Long Island for the ferry among New York Yankees fans. Glen Cove Mayor Ralph Suozzi has informed me that the City would be very interested in adding a Yankees ticket or other promotional incentive to the RFEI to use as a chip to attract respondents.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. Please feel free to contact Gerry Petrella in my Long Island office at (631) 753-0978 to set-up a meeting at your convenience.
Let's Go Yankees!
Sincerely,
Charles E. Schumer
U.S. Senator
* * *
Mr. David Newman
Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications
New York Mets
Dear Mr. Newman,
I write to request your participation in exploring an exciting new partnership between the Mets, the City of Glen Cove, and the thousands of baseball fans across Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Over the past few years, I have worked tirelessly with the City of Glen Cove to identify and secure the resources needed to construct a new state-of-the-art ferry terminal for the Glen Cove Waterfront. Construction is currently underway and I am working with the Mayor to advance new ferry transportation alternatives and attractions. Today, I strongly believe the New York Mets have a unique opportunity to partner with the City to help start a pilot ferry service for Mets fans, a no-traffic luxury service alternative to the highly-congested Long Island highway system.
On June 1, 2010 the City of Glen Cove broke ground on the first phase of the ferry terminal project, which will serve Glen Cove and North Shore residents for commuting and recreational uses. This is a monumental step forward in the effort to clean-up Glen Cove Creek, revitalize the City's downtown, and bring additional economic activity to the region. The Glen Cove Ferry Terminal and Boat Basin is a federally funded project involving the design and construction of a ferry terminal building, marine and waterside improvements, public access, pedestrian spaces and a parking facility. When completed, the terminal will be a great public amenity for the City of Glen Cove that links the City to new regional markets, removes cars from the roadway system and establishes a unique public realm on the waterfront that serves to anchor the redevelopment of the area. In a preliminary study, the City identified Citi Field as a potential attraction for ferry service.
As you know, Long Island is home to a significant concentration of loyal New York Mets fans. On any given day of a Mets home game, Long Islanders traveling by car to Citi Field expect the hassle of delays and traffic, a staple of New York City's complex network of highways. In an effort to relieve some of that burden and promote mass transit, the Mets for many years have partnered with the MTA-Long Island Rail Road to offer discounted ticket packages and prices for passengers during select home games. This program reduces the cost of games for middle-class Long Island families, promotes the use of mass transit, and cuts down on car traffic on Long Island's highways.
The City is currently near completion of a soon-to-be-released Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for private ferry service based out of the new terminal in Glen Cove Creek. I implore you to begin a dialogue with the City of Glen Cove in their effort to attract new regional recreational service to the Ferry Terminal. I strongly believe that there is a ripe opportunity for the Mets to negotiate an arrangement with the City on discounted ticket packages for new ferry riders. This could potentially make the coming RFEI much more attractive to potential service providers and stimulate demand on Long Island for the ferry among New York Mets fans. Glen Cove Mayor Ralph Suozzi has informed me that the City would be very interested in adding a Mets ticket incentive to the RFEI to use as a chip to attract respondents.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. Please feel free to contact Gerry Petrella in my Long Island office at (631) 753-0978 to set-up a meeting at your convenience.
Let's Go Mets!
Sincerely,
Charles E. Schumer
U.S. Senator