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In addition to ferrying more than 1 million passengers from its Hudson River berth, the SS United States was also a top-secret convertible troop transport that could rush 14,000 troops 10,000 miles without refueling.
Rendering courtesy of SS United States Conservancy
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Last week the SS United States Conservancy unveiled its plan, in partnership with RXR and MCR Hotels, to bring the famous ocean liner back to New York City and repurpose it as a mixed-use destination, including a 1,000-key hotel and other public green space and amenities. “The project could be a capstone to a decades-long effort to protect and revitalize the Hudson River waterfront, create thousands of new jobs, and generate millions in tax revenue annually,” the Conservancy stated. Readers may recall the last time the ship was in peril, as contributor Dean Barber documented in a memorable May 2012 Online Insider called “Ship to Shore: A Love Story.”
Today, says the Conservancy, the ship faces possible eviction from its current pier in Philadelphia due to a doubling of the rent during the pandemic, “placing significant financial strain on the organization,” said the organization’s statement on November 2. “The Conservancy is presently in litigation on the matter, with a trial date slated for early December. The redevelopment plan identified Manhattan’s Hudson River as “the optimal ‘home port’ for the vessel,” it continued, “due to its proximity to transportation and pedestrian access to the Javits Convention Center.” However, the vision is not limited to New York. “Other locations and port cities could benefit from the ship’s commercial revitalization and iconic status,” says the Conservancy, which is now seeking state and local interest “from New York or other potential cities to advance its plan at a host pier location,” to which the nonprofit would donate the ship and the design and engineering work completed to date in order to expedite matters.
“The SS United States symbolizes the nation’s ambition and innovation,” said Susan Gibbs, president of the SS United States Conservancy, whose grandfather helped design and build the ship. “He is on record as saying that he loved the ship one thousand times more than his own wife,” she told Dean Barber in our 2012 story, and would meet it each time it docked. But even in 2012, she said, “It really is remarkable the ship has not been scrapped before now.” Eleven years later, “we are quickly running out of time,” she said last week, only this time from the extra pressure of the rent. “We know this can be a viable, transformative project. Let’s rally together to secure a home for America’s Flagship.”
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