Take a sad plan
And make it better
Remember
To let us into our Park
Then you can start
To make it better”
That was the anthem, sung to the tune of “Hey Jude” composed by Marie de Cenival for our demonstration before the City Planning Commission hearing July 31 about the fate of our East River Park.
Some 58 people testified, almost all against the plan that will close and demolish our park, keep it closed for years, then rebuild it in a badly conceived flood control plan.
The Planning Commissions vote is an important step in the approval process for the East Side Coastal Resiliency plan that is so destructive to our neighborhood.
Did we persuade the Commission to VOTE NO on the plan? We gave them many good reasons to stop the plan and do it right. But more voices will make a stronger case.
Video by Naomi Schiller
If you weren’t able to testify, you still have until August 30 to send in your comments, which should be taken into consideration before the final vote. See the end of the post for instructions.
The hearing received some good coverage. Here are some excerpts. Click on the name of the publication to see the full story:
Flood Protection Will Cost Lower Manhattan Residents Time without Beloved East River Park
By Michael Herzenberg, Manhattan, August 1, 2019, NY1
“They’re basically going to take 2.2 miles of New York City shoreline and destroy every living thing along that shoreline,” said East Village Resident Amy Berkov.
“Over 980 trees will be killed many large and over thirty years old which creates deep cooling shade beneath,” another opponent of the plan told the Planning Department.
“Life over trees. I believe in protecting life and I believe in protecting homes,” area resident and plan supporter Nancy Ortiz told the Planning Department.
[Note from East River Park ACTION: Nancy Ortiz has consistently testified in support of the plan. We’d like to persuade her–and the city–that we can keep many trees and parts of the park open and also protect our lives and homes from flooding. The current plan will leave us completely unprotected for the 3 1/2 years planned closing and likely far beyond. We are asking for temporary flood protection that will make a difference this year! And for a better plan.]
Future of East Side flood protection plan debated at heated hearing
The plan will protect a 2.4 mile stretch of Manhattan’s coast from flooding
By Caroline Spivack Aug 1, 2019, Curbed
“This park and this neighborhood is located quite a distance from public transit and the park itself has really become an important transportation artery,” said City Planning Commissioner Larisa Ortiz. “I think that that’s got to be thought through because of the importance of this as a north-south connector.”
[Note from East River Park ACTION: This is an encouraging note from the Commissioner talking primarily about bikes. There is no current safe alternative for bicycles in our neighborhood.] Here is Elisabeth Dyssegard Kallick, a passionate advocate for bikes, play streets and other alternatives from an earlier hearing:
After East River Park is demolished, we need more bike lanes and places for kids to play from Pat Arnow on Vimeo.
Flood Plan That Rebuilds East River Park Draws Dozens To Meeting
The City Planning Commission held a hearing on the controversial flood protection plan for Manhattan’s east side.
By Sydney Pereira, Patch
“If approved, the project would then go to City Council, where Councilmember Carlina Rivera holds a pivotal vote.”
“Rivera remains concerned about the lack of commitment to phased construction to allow for use of the park during construction, among other issues, though has not outright opposed the plan.”
[Note from East River Park ACTION: Council Member Rivera needs to know how many people in her district oppose this plan!]
BY AUGUST 30, Tell the City Planning Commission
VOTE NO on the East Side Coastal Resiliency Plan that will close and kill our park for years.
VOTE NO to keeping the park closed for years while they rebuild it higher for flood protection in the least environmentally friendly way possible–the anti-New Green Deal.
VOTE NO because the plan provides NO temporary flood protection.
VOTE NO to an unjust plan that is bad for the physical and mental health of more than 100,000 low and middle income residents who live nearby.
VOTE NO and work with our community for a better plan.
Send your statement
Email:CDBGDR-Enviro@omb.nyc.gov Online: http://www.nyc.gov/cdbgdr Snail Mail: NYC Office of Management and Budget, c/o Calvin Johnson, Assistant Director CDBG-DR, 255 Greenwich Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10007, or New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, c/o Colleen Alderson, Chief, Parklands and Real Estate, The Arsenal, Central Park, 830 Fifth Avenue, Room 401, New York, NY 10065
Need more information about what to say?
Here’s a brief history, along with some of the city’s wrong information and our factual answers. FACT SHEET ABOUT THE EAST SIDE COASTAL RESILIENCY PLAN
And here’s a blog post, A Beginner’s Guide to the NYC Environmental Impact Statement for the East River Park, about the “long and painful document” that is the Draft Environmental Impact Statement and the city’s “Preferred Plan” that will destroy and close our park for years. Our voices need to be heard strongly, or the Environmental Impact report will pass, and we are truly screwed.
But, hey Dude, we can start to make it Better Better Better!
I received your mini-flyer yesterday on a 5BBC ride with guest A/M Harvey Epstein. Epstein has been told it is a city issue and he is a State official, but he believes:
A. The redevelopment will take more than 3.5 years, and probaly be over-budget too.
B. The idea that it will take less time to redo the whole park all at once instead of in phases is a false one.
C. There has to be a better way than burying every living and manmade thing in the park.
We talked about using popup or (my suggestion), bulkhead mounted up-folding barricades only when needed, to block tidal storm surges like we had with Hurricane Sandy. We had plenty of warning with Hurricane Sandy, and would have ample time the next time, to pop up/fold up barricades to block the East River. These could be 10′ or even higher, higher than the park is going to be raised. What happens in 50 years when sea levels go even higher? Do we raise the park AGAIN? It would be better to just install 15′ barricades and be done with it for 100 years or more. What happens in the 3.5 to ??? years during construction? If there’s another Hurricane Sandy during that time, all that precious unconstrained dirt will be washed out to the river, or on land, making an even worse catastrophe than Sandy. Plus, the city may have to start all over. 3.5 year or more is a long time. Anything can happen.
Cheaper, faster, simpler, better ecologically. Isn’t that a winning formula?
I am a ride leader for the East Coast Greenway Alliance and meetup.com’s Urban Cyclists. At least two of our annual rides would be severely impacted by this park destruction. We are Greenway riders, and shifting to miles of on-street riding is not practical or safe for large groups of dozens of riders.
Thank you Scott. All excellent ideas for temporary protection. We are demanding the city provide such protection and take time to develop a better plan that will not destroy our entire park for years.
We are hoping to get together with bikers, runners, and other park users to make sure the city knows how important our park is. Please join us: ourpark@eastriverparkaction.org
Coastal Resiliency says it all.
It would indeed be tragic if we and many of the stake holders along the Lower East River were forced to accept the total annialation of this land with its plants, animals, insects and amended living soils for three or more years in order to make it ‘resilient’ in 2022.
Partial resiliency already exists. Let us start from here. And build upon IT.
Navigating your website is a challenge for me: My comment (above) was addressed to the governmental body who heard our comments in July. However, it’s good to be connected with such an crucial issue.
I read much of the information you’ve made available.
My priority: How to find a viable plan among the ones submitted; determine if the other two groups have issues in common with our own. I recognize the complications of this last.
We are dreaming of a viable plan. To start we are demanding that the city go back to the previous plan that the community approved and revise it as needed. That plan had berms (grassy embankments) along the FDR, and did not destroy the entire park.
I’m sorry the website is hard to navigate. We are a grassroots group with no pro designers, just passionate advocates working by the seat of our pants. Bear with us please.
Addressing these comments to the city is a great idea. The City Planning Commission is accepting comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement until Aug. 30. They will vote on the plan after that, so what you say makes a difference. Send it to: Email: CDBGDR-Enviro@omb.nyc.gov