During the 1970s, there was a long-running discussion about what to do with the Red Hook waterfront after the creation of containerization. There was a plan for a larger containerport running the length of the western shoreline that did not materialize, but led to Red Hook's western edge becoming very abandoned.

A smaller containerport was created in the early 1980s after the Tri-Party Agreement, reflected in the documents here, between the City, the State, and the Port Authority was finalized December 18, 1979. That agreeement says that the Port Authority should maintain the port for 50 years until 2029.  More on this story in our essay "RED HOOK THEN TO NOW: marsh, mill pond, port, derelict, renewal."