A new ferry terminal floated into Battery Park City Saturday morning. The $50 million terminal at Vesey St. will have five ferry slips and a 22,000-square-foot waiting room, along with bathrooms and concession stands. The terminal won’t open until after Labor Day, so a temporary terminal with three slips will continue operating until then. The project was in the works even before 9/11. The bigger terminal will also accommodate the likely influx of commuters traveling to the Goldman Sachs headquarters and future World Trade Center office towers. The temporary terminal sees 7,400 trips each weekday. Saturday morning, three tugboats pulled the terminal across the harbor from Sunset Park, Brooklyn, where it was assembled. Before the terminal opens, it must pass inspection by the Coast Guard, said Steve Coleman, Port Authority spokesperson. The Port Authority still has to install glass in the gangways, finish the floor, ticket booths and bathrooms and connect the utilities.
