The BroadsheetDAILY May 20, 2019

Although Not Yet a Shore Thing, Proposal for Brooklyn Bridge Beach Takes a Step Forward

A rendering of the proposed Brooklyn Bridge Beach, for which the City’s Economic Development Corporation has accepted $12 million in funding. The organization later ruled the project unsafe and announced its desire to spend the money on other proposals,  but more recently indicated that it may be willing to implement a version of the plan.

After multiple rounds of funding since 2013, the proposed Brooklyn Bridge Beach — a project supported by elected officials, community leaders, and the public — may be inching closer to reality.

The plan, backed by all of these constituencies, aims to create a crescent-shaped wedge of sand along the East River waterfront, just north of the South Street Seaport, where park-goers could wade knee deep in tide. If built, it would become the sole access point at which Lower Manhattan residents could step into the water that surrounds them, rather than merely looking at it.

The site is controlled by the Economic Development Corporation (EDC), a not-for-profit corporation that negotiates strategic partnerships designed to foster economic growth by harnessing public-sector resources to private-sector projects. Although the EDC has accepted millions of dollars from the City Council and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) that were earmarked to create Brooklyn Bridge Beach, the organization refused for years to spend any of this money. Instead, EDC declared that a beach on that stretch of the East River would be unsafe, and attempted to reallocate the funds to other, nearby projects — such as the East River Esplanade.

Paul Goldstein

But at the April 26 meeting of Community Board 1 (CB1), Paul Goldstein, who chairs that panel’s Waterfront Committee, said, “EDC reported to us that they are aware people are asking for access to the water’s edge and water itself. They said they are going to cut the bulkhead back to provide access to the beach and shoreline, through ramps and stairs that go to the beach. Their goal at this point is something they call ‘toes in the sand.’ Whether they are really going to allow people into the water remains to be seen.”

This represents a substantial departure from the EDC’s previous position. In 2018, an EDC source told the Broadsheet, “a study conducted by a professional engineer determined that there were feasibility and safety concerns for the Brooklyn Bridge Beach project as it was originally proposed. Given the serious safety and permitting issues, we will not be building Brooklyn Bridge Beach as proposed, but still have every intention of creating a project that connects the community with the waterfront. We are working towards putting out a request for proposals for the design of a buildable project that takes into account safety and permitting feasibility concerns as set forth in the study.”

An annual paddle board race, which costs $1,000 to enter and is permitted by the City, that begins on a sandy stretch of shoreline beneath the Brooklyn Bridge where another City agency says the water is too dangerous to allow the public access.

At a CB1 meeting in January, 2018, a succession of boosters outlined their frustration with this approach. Graeme Birchall, president of the Downtown Boathouse (which provides free kayaks to more than 30,000 people each summer in the Hudson River and on Governors Island), noted that, “EDC says the water is not safe there, but every year, the City allows hundreds of people into the water there for private event — a paddle board race that costs $1,000 to enter.”

This was a reference to SEA Paddle NYC, which has (every year since 2007) invited a crowd of paddlers to wade into the surf at the site of the proposed beach and embark on a 25-mile race up to the northern tip of Manhattan, and back down the Hudson River shoreline.

Louis Kleinman, the community liaison for the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance, a not-for-profit advocacy group that works to transform the waters of New York and New Jersey Harbor into clean and accessible places to learn, work and play, said, “people who do a lot of East River kayaking use that beach regularly. It’s totally illegal, but they pull in there all the time, and never have any problem with safety.”

David Sheldon, a member of Save Our Seaport, which advocates for preserving the neighbor hood surrounding the site, asked, “what were all those millions of dollars supposed to be for? Surely they didn’t need that much for a patch of sand?”

In 2016, the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation allocated $5 million to the project. According to the official website of Governor Andrew Cuomo, these funds were intended, “to continue to build on… past support for public waterfront access…. The project will also include the installation of new railings and site furnishing while creating limited beach access near the Brooklyn Bridge.” This tranche of funding came on top of a 2013 allocation of $7 million from then-Manhattan Borough President (now City Comptroller) Scott Stringer.

The weather was perfect for lunch al fresco after a week of chilly rain.

On May 18, thousands of hungry festival-goers noshed their way around Duane Park Triangle to sample the best of Tribeca’s culinary star power; scores of volunteers punched tickets, directed recycling, and served VIPs; and dozens of chefs recreated their finest efforts and arranged perfect little tastes on paper plates.

It was the Taste of Tribeca’s 25th anniversary, benefiting P.S 150’s and P.S. 234’s arts and enrichment programs for more than 800 children.

We caught up with David Waltuck, director of culinary affairs at the Institute of Culinary Education (7 World Trade Center), as he offered a Chinese pulled pork taco. Of the 18 or so restaurants that took part in the first Taste of Tribeca 25 years ago, he noted, only a few remain. His restaurant, the elegant Chanterelle, closed in 2009. Still, he was happy to return for the 25th anniversary of this popular event. “It’s nice to be here,” he said.

The Battery Park City Authority has engaged 100 Resilient Cities, a program supported by the Rockefeller Foundation, to create the Authority’s first-ever strategic plan.

Using resilience as a lens, BPCA and 100 Resilient Cities will use our most recent Parks User Count and Study, community input from public meetings, and many other inputs to develop an action plan designed to ensure we’re addressing Battery Park City’s needs comprehensively and strategically.

 As part of this ongoing outreach, we are also soliciting public input through the following brief survey, which will be available until May 26.

 We invite you to please take a few minutes to  complete it.

Thank you in advance for your input. We look forward to hearing from you!

Sincerely-

Vice President of Communications & Public Affairs

Monday, May 20, 2019 at 3 PM

The Civic Engagement Commission will hold its first public meeting on Monday, May 20, 2019 at 3:00 pm at The David N. Dinkins Municipal Building – 1 Centre Street, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10007.

In November 2018, New York City voters approved Charter revisions that established the New York City Civic Engagement Commission, which can be found in Chapter 76 of the New York City Charter. The Commission’s purpose is to enhance civic participation through a variety of initiatives, including participatory budgeting, expanded poll site interpretation and assistance to community boards.

For more information about the Commission please visit the Commission’s website.

The meeting is open to the public. Because this is a public meeting and not a public hearing, the public will have the opportunity to observe the Commission’s discussions, but not testify before it.

What if I need assistance to participate in the meeting? The meeting location is accessible to individuals using wheelchairs or other mobility devices. Free induction loop systems and ASL interpreters will be available upon request. Free interpretation services will be available in Spanish and other languages upon request. Please make any such requests or other accessibility requests by 2:00 pm no later than Thursday, May 16, 2019 by emailing civicengagement@cityhall.nyc.gov or calling (212) 676-4939.

Jose Bayona

Director of Community & Ethnic Media

Office of Mayor Bill de Blasio

Hudson River Park Trust Seeks Development on Pier 40

	The 14-acre former cruise ship terminal situated along the Hudson River waterfront, near West Houston Street.

The Hudson River Park Trust (HRPT), in collaboration with local elected officials, is seeking to revise its enabling legislation to allow for commercial development at Pier 40.

“The major issue is that there need to be changes to the legislation that created the Hudson River Park, because Pier 40 is sinking,” explained Anthony Notaro, chair of Community Board 1 (CB1) at an April 26 meeting.

Renewed Concerns about Emergency Response Time in Lower Manhattan

May 10 at West and Murray Streets: Pedestrian Sarah Chan is run over with enough force to sever her foot.

“When I got the 911 operator on the phone, she transferred me to another operator, who asked for the location of the accident. I explained that we were in front of 325 South End Avenue, in Manhattan. But this operator kept repeating that help was on the way to 32 South Street in Brooklyn. I kept telling her this was incorrect, but she kept repeating ‘South Street in Brooklyn.’ Then she said they would call me back.”

May 20

Many ships pass Lower Manhattan on their way to and from the midtown Passenger Ship Terminal.  Others may be seen on their way to or from docks in Brooklyn and Bayonne.

 Stated times, when appropriate, are for passing the Colgate Clock and are based on sighting  histories, published schedules and intuition. They are also subject to tides, fog, winds, freak waves, hurricanes and the whims of upper management.

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