NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Mayor Eric Adams is close to a deal with Norwegian Cruise Line to house migrants on a docked ship at Staten Island's Homeport.
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A source told the New York Post that Adams wants to lease the ship for at least six months to house and process migrants once they enter the city's shelter system.
The plan would also allow migrants to come and go while staying on the ship, the source said, with early estimates saying the plan is "cheaper" than building a third hangar-sized tent, like the city is currently building in Orchard Beach.
Adams defended the idea last Monday, telling reporters that the city was looking for "creative ways" to address a "humanitarian crisis."
Adams' chief of staff, Frank Carone, has spoken with leaders of Norwegian Cruise Line to discuss the possibility, a source told the New York Times. Carone stayed on one of their ships in Normandy, France, last month, as part of the administration’s research, the source said.
It's a similar idea that former Mayor Michael Bloomberg reportedly floated in 2002 when he struggled with a way to respond to the city's then-homelessness crisis.
The source told the Post that the Adams administration is also negotiating using a ship from the Estonian company Tallink, which was hired by the country's government to shelter Ukrainian refugees who fled at the beginning of Russia's invasion.
According to a City Hall estimate, 15,000 migrants have entered New York City since May. Last week, Adams argued that the figure could eventually reach 75,000.
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