Black Falcon terminal to get $3m update

February 12, 2009|Nicole C. Wong, Globe Staff

The Massachusetts Port Authority board yesterday voted to spend $3 million this year to spruce up the Black Falcon Cruise Terminal with touches such as fresh paint, new light fixtures, an expanded passenger check-in mezzanine, an elevator, and colorful super-size wall graphics showcasing Boston.

More than 250,000 people arrive in Boston each year by cruise ship, and Massport hopes a favorable first impression when stepping off the ships will "whet their appetite to come back for a weekend in Boston or something longer in the future," said Massport chief executive Thomas J. Kinton Jr.

The upgrade is scheduled to begin in the spring and be completed by the end of the year, meaning only the superficial features like paint and signs will be in place for the cruise industry's summertime peak.

Massport had been hoping to work with the City of Boston and a private developer, Cargo Ventures LLC, on a project that would have included the development of office buildings and expansion of the terminal. That redevelopment project would cost hundreds of millions of dollars, of which $35 million would be for the terminal upgrade.