Pair of comedians buy Staten Island ferry boat
Saturday Night Live stars Pete Davidson and Colin Jost have bought a decommissioned ferry boat, according to the New York Post.
In partnership with comedy club owner Paul Italia, the pair spent $280,000 to purchase an old Staten Island ferry.
Italia says the trio have “grand plans” for the vessel.
“The idea is to turn the space into a live entertainment event space, with comedy, music, art, et cetera,” he says.
“We’re in the early stages, but everybody involved had the same ambition — not to see this thing go to the scrapyard.”
As it is, the ship won’t even move under its own power.
The New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services, which put the ship up for auction, told the New York Post that the John F. Kennedy has been recently decommissioned due to mechanical issues.
Italia says plans are being made to tow the ship by tugboat to a local shipyard, where he will keep it while a long-term location is found.
“We’re talking to a lot of shipyards in the area,” he says.
Davidson, caught on video visiting his new toy on Friday, told a passerby that the ship would be towed to Gowanus, where it would receive “a bunch of work.”
Built-in 1965, the JFK was the oldest ferry in the Staten Island fleet when it was retired last August due to mechanical failures in two of its engines. It is structurally sound, the Department of Citywide Administrative Services says.
Both SNL stars hail from the borough. Davidson grew up in Great Kills and still lives in the borough. Jost hails from Grymes Hill and shares several area homes with wife and Black Widow star Scarlett Johansson.
Pete Davidson (left) and Colin Jost on SNLMain image courtesy of The Staten Island Ferry.
