A “harbor of the future” is on its way to Brooklyn, as a city economic group announced on Wednesday a slew of repairs and upgrades for the historic waterfront Brooklyn Marine Terminal (BMT) in Red Hook. As part of its effort to build a modern maritime port, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), which oversees the BMT, has a lot in store for updating operations at the iconic and economically important port. 

NYCEDC officials, who gained control of the terminal in May 2024 from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, explained that it has experienced years of deterioration and divestment. The demolition and removal of the four out-of-service cranes, which is a hefty job, will take place from April to August 2025 by Atlantic Coast Dismantling (ACD). Meanwhile, the two cranes on Pier 9A are diesel operated and over 50 years old, NYCEDC officials said. They are also inaccessible due to the unstable condition of Pier 9A. The two cranes on Pier 10 that will be removed were damaged during Superstorm Sandy in 2012. 

NYCEDC said there will be space for a new electric crane, and ACD will recycle the steel from the four demolished cranes. 

The agency contracted with German-based manufacturer Liebherr to build and deliver the new all-electric ship-to-shore crane to serve the Red Hook Container Terminal at Pier 10. The entire process of construction, delivery, and on-site assembly will take approximately two years, making the new crane operational in Spring 2027.