When Will The Abandoned Boats Leave Hoboken Cove?

HOBOKEN, NJ — Once or twice a year, someone pledges to do something about the sunken boats between Hoboken and Weehawken, and then the discussion seems to fade into the sunset. But as the weather gets warm enough for sailing, hope is not lost.

Last September, residents signed a petition to remove 11 sunken boats from Hoboken Cove. The petition amassed 795 signatures.

Soon after the petition was launched, the mayor's office said the city was about to submit a grant application to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to get the boats removed, hoping to get as much as $104,000 to remove 17 boats. They asked residents to submit letters in support. READ MORE: Hoboken Mayor Moves To Rid Hudson River Of 17 Abandoned Boats

With the weather warming up, more people have noticed the boats bobbing off the coast of the mile-square city. When asked about the status of the grant, city spokesman Vijay Chaudhuri said last week, "The application is pending. We hope to have an announcement in the coming months."

"Responsibility of the cove is shared between Hoboken and Weehawken with a dividing line approximately in the middle," said the petition last year. "Unfortunately, it appears that all of the boats have been placed on Hoboken’s side of the cove and therefore are the responsibility of Hoboken to regulate and resolve."

In 2015, the U.S. Coast Guard conducted an investigation of the sunken vessels and declared that none of the boats were a source of pollution or a hazard to navigation. Due to these factors, the Coast Guard had no jurisdiction, they concluded.

In 2018, the city of Hoboken announced it had spent money to remove four boats. A councilwoman said she feared teens would climb on them, among other issues.

"I hope if they remove the boats and find the hull ID then the owners can be fined," said one signer of last year's petition.

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