Photo Courtesy of EDC
A second-grade class at PS 148 in East Elmhurst submitted “Spring Mallard” as the name for a 2018 NYC Ferry vessel.
By Michael V. Cusenza
Four of the 10 monikers that won this year’s NYC Ferry vessel-naming competition were submitted by borough schools.
Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Alicia Glen and City Councilman Danny Dromm (D-Jackson Heights) on Thursday visited one of those victorious schools: PS 148 in East Elmhurst, which submitted “Spring Mallard” in the City’s second boat-naming contest.
“’Spring Mallard’ is such a creative name for a vessel which will be known to millions of people who take the ferry each day,” Dromm said as he congratulated the boisterous bunch of second-graders that developed the seafaring sobriquet.
The other winners from the World’s Borough: PS 197 (Far Rockaway), “The Ocean Queen Rockstar”; PS 330 (Corona), “Rainbow Cruise”; and PS 112 (Long Island City), “Starlight.”
Glen fell in love with her favorite at first sight.
“The kids who came up with the name ‘Ocean Queen Rockstar’ are why I love this town so much,” the deputy mayor said. “Every one of these NYC Ferry boat names have swagger and panache – and these students and their schools should be incredibly proud.”
In 2017, the first vessel-naming contest produced handles for 13 NYC Ferry boats: Lunchbox, Urban Journey, Waves of Wonder, Friendship Express, Connector, Flyer, Opportunity, Happy Hauler, Great Eagle, Owls Head, McShiny, Munsee, and Sunset Crossing.
“An innovative ferry system deserves the kind of innovative boat names that could only come from our most creative New Yorkers,” said City Economic Development Corporation President James Patchett. “Years from now, these second-graders will be proud of seeing the ferryboats they named floating around the iconic New York City Harbor.”
In other nautical news, EDC announced on Tuesday that NYC Ferry has already begun hiring for the 2018 summer season. Ferry operator Hornblower is looking to fill more than 75 positions, including captains, deckhands, customer service agents, ticketing, and operations.
In less than a year of service, NYC Ferry has already employed more than 250 people, according to EDC. Due to unanticipated success, Hornblower has indicated that it expects to increase total NYC Ferry jobs to more than 325 by this summer.
Gotham’s newest mass transportation system launched last May—and has been wildly popular ever since. NYC Ferry served nearly three million passengers on more than 37,000 trips across four routes, including 545,000 on the Rockaway Route alone, according to final ridership numbers for the inaugural 2017 season.
