Somewhat nautical city in New York (5)
I believe the answer is:
utica
'city in new york' is the definition.
'somewhat nautical' is the wordplay.
'somewhat' indicates a hidden word.
'UTICA' is hidden within 'nautical'.
(Other definitions for utica that I've seen before include "old African city" , "Punic city" , "city of ancient Africa?" , "New York city" .)