Living in Queens, I’m accustomed to the jokes my friends crack about bringing their passport with them because of the supposed "distance" from Manhattan and Brooklyn. Har har har. But what isn’t funny is that you actually do need that passport if you’re planning on going to Water Taxi Beach in Long Island City.
OK, that’s a bit extreme… if you have a valid US driver’s license, you’re fine too, but any non-Americans (that includes Puerto Ricans too, for the most part) with foreign cédulas, carnés, IDs, etc, are shit out of luck. ’Cause segun the burly security guards at WTB, those ain’t valid. They need barcodes, English text, and one of 50 states on ’em somewhere.
This past Saturday a gaggle of international revelers headed over to the party spot post-PS1 Warm Up, and a noticeable percentage of them had to turn right around and head somewhere else, despite being clearly over 21 and carrying a valid ID card proving such. But since they’re not US citizens and never registered to get a driver’s license here (hello, we live in NYC!), none of their documentation "counted" (as it does everywhere else in the city). The bouncers wanted passports.
Since when did an isolated patch of sand along the East River become the most difficult nightspot to get in to (for foreigners) in the city?
Sure, the concept is cool, and the view is amazing, but is it really worth it?
Some folks have already written to the WTB people to express their disgust and disappointment, and you can too (watertaxibeach@gmail.com). Be sure to let us know if/what they respond!!!
www.watertaxibeach.com
watertaxibeach@gmail.com