NYC ‘floating jail' meant to offer temporary fix closing after 30 years

After more than three decades, New York City's "floating jail" in the East River is finally set to close.

The Department of Correction says the Vernon C. Bain Center will close in October. Close to 500 people in custody and 200 correction officers will be moved off "the boat" and into jails on Rikers Island and other facilities.

"The reason for this move is to centralize operations on the island to more efficiently manage people in custody and deploy staff and resources," a Department of Correction spokesperson said Wednesday.

The floating detention center was built in 1989 and opened in 1992. It was supposed to be a temporary fix for an increased population at Rikers Island.

Next month's scheduled closure marks a step in a yearslong process in shuttering Rikers and transferring inmates to jail across the five boroughs.

In August, a federal judge agreed to hear arguments to decide whether control of the complex should be placed under outside authority.

The city had said it plans to close the facility by 2027.