Staten Island ferry bought by Pete Davidson and SNL pal Colin Jost for $280,000 is INFESTED with cockroaches and full of asbestos
- The former captain of the Staten Island Ferry bought by Pete Davidson, 28, and Colin Jost, 40, will likely cost millions to renovate into a nightclub
- The captain, Kevin Hennessey, said the boat was filled with asbestos that would become dangerous during renovations, and that it was infested with roaches
- Jost and Davidson bought the ferry, the MV John F. Kennedy, with a group of investors last year for $280,000
- Comedy club owner Paul Italia, who joined Jost and Davidson in the purchase, called Hennessey's assessment of the ferry's state 'garbage information'
The retired Staten Island ferry SNL comedians Pete Davidson and Colin Jost bought in the hopes of opening a floating night club could be infested with roaches and filled with asbestos.
The ferry's former captain, Kevin Hennessey, told the New York Daily News it would likely cost Davidson and Jost millions to renovate the ferry which was first put into service in 1965.
Jost and Davidson bought the ferry - the MV John F. Kennedy - with a group of investors last year for $280,000.
Hennessey said the boat's engine was also compromised by a fire that broke out in the machine room just after the ferry was decommissioned and before the comedians purchased it.
Comedy club owner Paul Italia, who joined Jost and Davidson in the purchase, called Hennessey's assessment of the ferry's state 'garbage information,' and said plans for the ferry's future would be announced by year's end.
Comedians Pete Davidson, 28, (left) and Colin Jost, 40, (right) bought the retired Staten Island ferry in the hopes of turning it into a floating night club
Jost and Davidson bought the ferry - the MV John F. Kennedy - with a group of investors last year for $280,000
Hennessey said the toxic asbestos lining the walls of the ferry, which 'was a common building material' in 1965, would be one of the biggest complications the ferry project would face.
'As time went by and pipes and wires rot, the asbestos paneling was busted open and patched,' he said. 'It's generally harmless until you grind it or drill into it.'
He said roach infestations are common on the Staten Island ferries, but that the John F. Kennedy always had a particularly rampant problem.
Another ferry worker said that roaches thrived in compartments under the boat's seats where life jackets were stored.
'People are lazy and like to dump their trash in those,' the worker said.
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Ferry workers told the Daily News that they estimated renovations could be in the millions, and that Jost and Davidson were had a good idea but were out of their depth.
'I wish these guys luck with the project, but they're going to need some help,' Hennessey said.
'They had good intentions, but this was an impulse buy by two guys with a lot of money who don't know anything about maritime vessels.'
'I've seen people buy vessels like this in the past with daydreams of opening up a restaurant, but then you realize it's not connected to a sewer line, it needs ADA compliance. All kinds of stuff,' he added.
The interior of the Staten Island ferry purchased by comedians Pete Davidson and Colin Jost
The deck of the former Staten Island ferry, the MV John F. Kennedy. Former crew members estimate it will cost millions to renovate into a nightclub
President of New York City's Waterfront Alliance, which advocates for improving the city's waterfront, Cortney Koenig Worrall, said the idea was a good one but that space to pull it off was limited and expensive.
'They're definitely onto something,' Worrall said. 'But there are very few spaces within New York City that can accommodate a permanently anchored ship or venue like that. There's a premium on space on land, but there's an even higher premium on waterfront property.'
The comedians won the boat at auction after it was taken out of commission in August.
'The Staten Island Ferry is definitely something iconic,' Italia, who is also a real estate investor, said after the purchase. 'We wanted to figure out a way to save it and to do something special with it.'
'The idea is to turn the space into a live entertainment event space, with comedy, music, art, et cetera,' he said.
NYC Mayor Eric Adams voiced his support for the project after news broke. 'I love this idea. What a great way to give an NYC icon a second life,' Mayor Eric Adams tweeted earlier this year.
Davidson most recently dated Kim Kardashian for a whirlwind nine-month romance. Jost has been married to actress Scarlett Johansson for two years. The two share a son
Davidson was last romantically tied to Kim Kardashian. The pair dated from October of 2021 until August of 2022 before calling it quits due to 'distance issues.'
The SNL comedian has been away shooting the movie Wizards! in Australia.
A source, however, told Insider last week that the couple 'still keep in touch' after calling it quits on their nine-month relationship.
Jost is married to actress Scarlett Johansson and share son Cosmo Jost together. Scarlett also shares seven-year-old daughter Rose Dorothy with French journalist ex-husband Romain Dauriac.
The couple, who have been married two years, were spotted vacationing in the Hamptons over the summer.
The actress, 37, wowed in a red bikini while relaxing with Jost and several friends on a sleek boat - that did not appear to be infested with roaches.
