Towering and Immersive, a Titanic 'Experience' Is Pitched for the Seaport

Illustration of the concept for an as-yet undesigned "tower of light" on Pier 16, as seen looking east along Fulton Street. Advocates for the plan see the structure as a "bookend" to the Oculus at the World Trade Center at the other end of Fulton Street. Image courtesty of Titanic New York

A Titanic experience at the Seaport?

That’s the aim of a group of descendants of the fated voyage who have organized an effort to erect a 12-story “one-of-a-kind city attraction” on Pier 16. As yet undesigned and unfunded, the ambitious project, called Beacon of Hope, would be a towering tourist attraction in the form of a futuristic lighthouse. “From construction to discovery,” it would tell the story of the ship as visitors ascend the structure, leaning heavily on virtual reality and other “immersion” technology rather than museum-style artifacts.

“It’s a timeless story about bravery and sacrifice and one that only descendants can tell,” Adrian Saker, president of the non-profit Titanic New York, told Community Board 1’s Waterfront, Parks and Cultural Committee during a presentation last month. 

It would also be a big commercial draw to the Seaport, he said, noting that Titanic Belfast drew 800,000 visitors in 2023. (The Titanic was built in Belfast.) “You can see the profits there,” he said.

Saker, who is not a descendant, said he was looking for CB1 support as a first step in gaining political backing for the estimated $39 million project and, eventually, the investors to fund it. The design would emerge from a competition.

“Many other cities in the world have created stunning pieces of architecture on their waterfronts, and there’s an opportunity here in the Seaport to do that,” Saker said.

A few blocks away, at Pearl, Water and Fulton streets, is the Seaport Museum’s  Titanic Memorial Lighthouse, which originally stood atop the 13-story Seamen’s Church Institute at Coenties Slip and is now being restored. Asked why the Seaport needs another Titanic lighthouse, Saker said his group’s proposed project is different.  

“This is about the story of Titanic,” he said. “This isn’t a memorial.”

(When asked about the proposal at a previous committee meeting, Jonathan Boulware, the museum’s president, declined to comment.)

Although rescued survivors aboard the Carpathia disembarked at Pier 54 on the West Side (where there is a commemorative plaque), Saker insisted that the proposed Titanic lighthouse belongs at the Seaport because “historically there was a lighthouse there,” referring to the Coenties Slip tower.

Saker’s group proposes that the beacon-topped tower be included in a future redo of Pier 16 as part of the FiDi and Seaport Climate Resilience Plan. 

The committee was not enthusiastic about a towering addition to the Seaport. “Lukewarm at best,” is the way that committee chair Paul Goldstein later put it.

“It strikes me as a theme park that we would be approving on the waterfront that is celebrating the sinking of a ship over a hundred years ago,” said Richard Corman.

Fellow committee member Jess Coleman said he liked the idea as a concept but “if you came to us with something that was more modest, more open to the public, I think there’d be a better reception.”

Saker later told the Trib over the phone that his group will be addressing some of the questions raised by the committee, “but initially we’re going to go forward and look for sponsorships and funding and business partners to develop this project.”