The NJ Transit board may soon vote on whether to buy three acres of the Hoboken waterfront for use as a ferry maintenance yard in a deal blasted by the city's new mayor as "unfair," "rushed," and a bad public policy move.

The agency's Board of Directors is scheduled for a vote Friday morning at the agency's Newark headquarters on a measure authorizing staffers "to take any and all actions to acquire the former Union Dry Dock property," from the Port Imperial Marine Facilities LLC, a subsidiary of New York Waterway.

A vote had been scheduled for the board's regular meeting on Wednesday, but the meeting was postponed after too few members were present for a quorum.

The measure would also authorize the agency to lease the dry dock property back to New York Waterway for the purpose of maintaining and repairing its ferry fleet, which NJ Transit supports as a key component of the trans-Hudson commuter network.

The measure does not specify dollar amounts, but officials say the purchase would cost NJ Transit at least $11.5 million -- the price New York Waterway paid for the property in November.

MAYOR RAVI S. BHALLA HOSTS PRESS CONFERENCE IN TRENTON TO HIGHLIGHT IRRESPONSIBLE 11TH HOUR SPENDING SPREE BY NEW JERSEY TRANSIT Posted by Hoboken on Monday, January 8, 2018

New York Waterway bought the dry dock property this fall because, it said, the owner of the site of the company's old maintenance facility adjacent to its ferry terminal in Weehawken is moving ahead with plans to develop that land as housing.

On Tuesday, NY Waterway spokesman Pat Smith said the NJ Transit deal in Hoboken, though not finalized, would cost the company a "six-figure annual rent" on the property, and include a clause demanding the company invest "in excess of $10 million" of its own funds to rehabilitate the dry dock.

But in a dispute between one of New Jersey's fastest-growing municipalities and one of the nation's biggest transit agencies, Hoboken officials had also taken steps to acquire the same piece of property along scenic Sinatra Drive for a stretch of waterfront park, if necessary by seizing the property under its power of eminent domain.

"The Hoboken waterfront is the crown jewel of the State of New Jersey," said Mayor Ravi Bhalla. "People from all over the world come to our city to enjoy the waterfront and the breathtaking views that it offers."

Referring to Gov. Christie Christie's departure from office on Jan. 20, Bhalla criticized the plan by the transit agency he controls as being "rushed at the 11th hour of an outgoing administration."

State-owned property is immune to seizure by a municipality, so NJ Transit's purchase of the dry dock site from New York Waterway would thwart the city's effort and, ironically, help assure that the ferry operator is able to use it as a maintenance yard through the proposed lease-back arrangement.

On Monday, Bhalla joined officials including Hoboken Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher, Assemblywoman Annette Chaparro (D-33rd District), who represents the city, and local activists to criticize NJ Transit's plans.

Bhalla, who was elected in November, insisted a new site could be found for the maintenance yard. But company officials say they have been looking for a decade and no viable alternative exists.

"You are not talking about relocating a pizzeria," New York Waterway Chairman Armand Pohan warned the City Council in November.

Bhalla's political ally and predecessor as mayor, Dawn Zimmer, had been unable to negotiate a friendly purchase of the dry dock property from its former owners, who ended up selling to New York Waterway. Zimmer did not seek a third term, and is now a member of Governor-elect Phil Murphy's transition team.

Councilman Michael DeFusco, a frequent Zimmer critic who finished second to Bhalla in the November mayoral race, said the dry dock case was a lesson for local officials in the importance of making timely and fair offers to private property owners.

NY Waterway has ferried 30,000 daily commuters across the Hudson since 2007 -- 2,000 of them Hoboken residents.

NJ Transit issued a statement in response to Monday's press conference, emphasizing the "vital role" played by ferries in the everyday Hudson River commute, and as an alternate mode during emergency situations like last year's "Summer of Hell" that limited rail service.

"The recent summer Amtrak outage at Penn Station New York (PSNY) is a prime example of how ferries provided critical additional Trans-Hudson capacity that helped move thousands of commuters between New Jersey and New York safely and efficiently," the statement read.

"The statutes also give NJ TRANSIT responsibility to construct, operate and maintain capital projects and facilities for ferries, including improvements that support robust ferry service in the trans-Hudson corridor. During the past 20 years, New Jersey has invested more than $200 million in ferry projects, including the Weehawken Ferry Terminal and the ferry slip at Hoboken Terminal."

NOTE: This article originally stated that the transit board was scheduled to vote Wednesday on the dry dock measure, but was updated to reflect the vote's postponement to Friday.

NJ Advance Media staff writer Larry Higgs contributed to this article.

Steve Strunsky may be reached at sstrunsky@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SteveStrunsky. Find NJ.com on Facebook.