After hosting the banquet of the International Kinus Hashluchim in the armory in Crown Heights last year, and at Manhattan’s Pier 94 two years ago, Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky has announced on behalf of the Vaad Hakinus that this year the banquet will take place at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, located at Pier 12 in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn.
The historic waterfront of Brooklyn served as the gateway for the nation’s goods and people for more than 150 years. Pier 12, developed just prior to the Civil War, has almost exclusively served as a cargo pier for all types of goods, until 2006 when a $52million renovation transformed it into New York’s newest luxury cruise ship terminal. It is located at the intersection of Bowne and Imlay Streets, opposite Governor’s Island on Buttermilk Channel.
The Brooklyn Cruise Terminal was determined to be an ideal place for this year’s banquet, complete with 182,000 square feet of space, views of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty, and its proximity to Crown Heights.
The grand hall welcomes tens of thousands of cruise passengers from around the world each year. In recent months, negotiations were conducted for obtaining the necessary permits to conduct an event such as the Kinus banquet..
“The increase in attendance from year to year requires us to search for locations that are consistently larger and more spacious,” says Rabbi Mendel Kotlarsky, a key coordinator. “It is also important to us that it will be easily accessible to the thousands who participate in it. The Brooklyn Terminal was the right choice in terms of location and its appropriate size. “
The Kinus banquet brings together thousands of shluchim from around the world, to join together with their supporters for an evening of inspiration and camaraderie. The event is considered the largest sit down dinner in New York City, with 4,000 people under one roof.
The highly skilled production teams of David Sharf and Ronen Peled will be coordinating the banquet as it has in past years, with the assistance of Rabbi Schneor Nejar and members of the Vaad Hakinus who spend days and nights to ensure the success of the event and a kiddush shem Lubavitch.
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