By Sunayana Prabhu
MIDDLETOWN – NY Waterway is closing its Belford operations but not without a fight.
In a bidding war with Seastreak, NY Waterway lost the contract on ferry service from the Belford port terminal to Manhattan and Jersey City which it has been operating for the last 20 years.
The Monmouth County Board of County Commissioners awarded the contract to Seastreak, disqualifying NY Waterway over its failure to produce a “consent of surety” in its bid proposal. NY Waterway plans to challenge the board’s decision with litigation in upcoming weeks, according to company spokespeople.
At the board of commissioners working session held June 21, NY Waterway CEO and president Armand Pohan requested the board reassess its decision. “I suggest you ask the people if this is in the best interest of the county,” Pohan said.
“You’re depriving your residents of a choice here,” he said, noting the $21.50 fare NY Waterway offers will jump to $28 under Seastreak.
“Everyone has had Monmouthopoly,” said Pohan, accusing the county of bias in allowing Seastreak to gain a monopoly over the three port terminals in Monmouth County in Atlantic Highlands, Highlands and now Belford.
Pohan explained that NY Waterway’s bid had “offered the most frequent service and lowest ticket prices, yet it was thrown out based on a technicality in which the county didn’t follow its own rules. That’s a bad deal for riders in Monmouth County, and we intend to fight it.”
A county attorney at the working session said there was “no legal impediment” to voting on the contract. Thomas A. Arnone, county commissioner director, said, “After initial review of the proposals, the county found that NY Waterway’s bid was noncompliant because it failed to submit a consent of surety, a mandatory bid item, with its bid proposal. The bid proposal from Seastreak was found to be compliant with all bid requirements and specifications. The county has notified NY Waterway regarding the noncompliance and rejection of its bid.”
But Wiley Norvell, senior vice president at Rubenstein, a strategic communications and reputation management firm that represents NY Waterway, argued the county never objected to the letter of credit in its client’s proposal.
In December 2021, NY Waterway was asked for a consent of surety, a bond that demonstrates the company can financially provide service and has the liquidity to hire staff, maintain boats for its operation and more. “Waterway asked the county if it could instead give a letter of credit from a bank, essentially saying that it had sufficient funds and sufficient credit, rather than issuing the bond. The county said that was OK,” Norvell explained.
So, he said they were “very surprised” when the company received a letter from the county March 26 saying NY Waterway’s proposal had been disqualified.
“There had been no communication or questions or anything about the bid in the intervening three months. No reason to assume anything’s going on or there’s any problem with it whatsoever,” Norvell said, insisting the county told NY Waterway the letter of credit would be sufficient.
He said the county’s letter called the lack of a consent of surety a “fatal defect.” Norvell confirmed the company would be filing a lawsuit in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, Seastreak executives said the company has plans to connect all three Monmouth County departure points by a shuttle that will offer more options and flexibility for riders.
“I don’t think that this creates monopoly,” said James D. Barker, vice president of Seastreak. “If anything, it adds more flexibility for the average commuter to access New York City.”
Seastreak has been operating its ferry services from Highlands and Atlantic Highlands since the early 2000s. The company was awarded a two-year contract from Monmouth County to operate the Belford service June 21. NY Waterway will continue operating ferries from Belford until the contract with Seastreak goes into effect in October.
The article originally appeared in the July 7 – 13, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.
