Skip to content
East River Park Action: Advocating for the health of the Lower East Side and the plent with science-based solutions
Menu
  • Home
    • Who We Are and Our Goals
  • News, History, Resources
    • East River Park News 2023/2024/2025
      • East River Park News 2022
      • East River Park News 2021
      • East River Park News 2020
      • East River Park News 2018-2019
    • History and Resources
      • History and Resources
      • Videos/Photos
        • Videos/Photos
        • Endangered Environs
      • Whaddya Want Anyway?
      • Cover the FDR
      • Legal
        • Alienated, reasons we sued, 2019
          • Alienation Lawsuit denied 8/20
          • Alienation denied, reasons for appeal
          • Alienation Lawsuit Appeal documents
          • Court orders, defied
          • Lawsuit Filed for Unredacted Value Engineering Report
      • Value Engineering
        • Value Engineering, Redacted
        • Resolved: No Value No Plan
      • Not One Sandbag
        • Not One Sandbag Part 2
      • The Rivers Beneath the Streets
    • Resiliency News from Everywhere
      • Resiliency News from Everywhere
      • East Side Coastal Resiliency Alternative Resources
  • Breathe
    • Breathe
    • LES Breathe
    • Sensors
    • Bad Air Days
    • Open Air Quality
    • Soil Foil
  • Synthetic Grass
    • Synthetic Grass
    • Synthetic Turf News
    • Research links on Artificial Turf
    • Proposed Real Grass Legislation in New York
    • Artificial Turf spills into East River, Lower East Side
    • Unnatural fields installed, East River Park, 2024
    • Temperatures of Artificial Turf, Lower East Side,
  • DONATE
  • Posts
  • ACTIONS NOW!
Menu

Pandemic Refuge

Posted on April 2, 2020April 2, 2020 by East River Park ACTION

Sarah A, an East River Park advocate writes, “The park’s been a tremendous source of comfort and relief to everyone during this pandemic.  We go there daily and see many people from all walks of life using it and enjoying the spring beauty now erupting in the flowers and trees.  It’s truly become a place of mental and physical refuge for everyone.”

The beauty of the park eases our troubled eyes. Photos by Sarah A.

To start major construction as planned this fall on the park that people desperately need during this crisis would be an especially cruel and unusual punishment.

And, as Sara A points out, “New York State’s 2020 budget has a $6.1 billion in deficit.  With the pandemic in full swing and tax revenues greatly lowered, we need to postpone any kind of work on the park to take care of the economic damage the virus is causing.  Proceeding with the ESCR this year (or next) would be incredibly wasteful and unconscionable given so many people have lost and are losing their jobs and income. ”  

We urge the city to provide the Lower East Side and East Village with temporary flood protection before the onset of the Hurricane season this summer. Halt the East Side Coastal Resiliency project the way it is currently planned.

  • corvid-19
  • east river park
  • East Side Coastal Resiliency
  • ESCR
  • pandemic
  • 2 thoughts on “Pandemic Refuge”

    1. Maya Chafe says:
      May 25, 2020 at 1:26 pm

      Yes, stop the plan. Provide flood protection, but NOT by destroying the park. Unacceptable.

      Reply
    2. Emily C says:
      July 12, 2020 at 9:36 pm

      Every time I went to the East River during the pandemic, I saw people taking care of their bodies, responsibly. Taking care of their families. Taking care of their health. Taking care of each other. Taking care of the earth. Praying. Exercising. Breathing – beneath a mask so as to protect their fellow human beings. Running, listening to music, rejoicing in nature — the one place we have access to it. We certainly need flood protection but not this way. Not if it means losing access to fresh air, grass, waterfront. Not if it means losing our sanity.

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Subscribe

    Our Air Quality Now

    We have three air quality monitors on the Lower East Side. See them at Purple Air.

    Be There!

    Visit our ACTIONS NOW! page to find out what you can do to help the health and livability of our Lower East Side.

    The Latest

    • Our Park May 26, 2025
    • Support Howard Brandstein April 16, 2025
    • Grassroots for “Touch Grass” bill April 9, 2025
    • No Power December 29, 2024
    • Synthetic Grass September 16, 2024
    Instagram icon
    Instagram. Click the logo above.

    Bluesky

    Facebook

    X

     

    This Lenapehoking Land

    East River Park is forever Indigenous land of Lenapehoking. We  honor and respect the land of this park by advocating for its renewal as a biodiverse, healthful ecosystem. 

    NYS Constitutional Amendment for Environmental Rights: "Each person shall have a right to clean air and water, and a healthful environment.”

    Help Save East River Park

    Contribute to our nonprofit East River Park Action
    using PayPal or a credit card.
    You can use the dropdown menu to choose:
    * LES Breathe (air monitoring and environment)
    * Legal Fund (for accountability and transparency)
    * Raising Hell (demand a better park!)
    • Home
      • Who We Are and Our Goals
    • News, History, Resources
      • East River Park News 2023/2024/2025
        • East River Park News 2022
        • East River Park News 2021
        • East River Park News 2020
        • East River Park News 2018-2019
      • History and Resources
        • History and Resources
        • Videos/Photos
          • Videos/Photos
          • Endangered Environs
        • Whaddya Want Anyway?
        • Cover the FDR
        • Legal
          • Alienated, reasons we sued, 2019
            • Alienation Lawsuit denied 8/20
            • Alienation denied, reasons for appeal
            • Alienation Lawsuit Appeal documents
            • Court orders, defied
            • Lawsuit Filed for Unredacted Value Engineering Report
        • Value Engineering
          • Value Engineering, Redacted
          • Resolved: No Value No Plan
        • Not One Sandbag
          • Not One Sandbag Part 2
        • The Rivers Beneath the Streets
      • Resiliency News from Everywhere
        • Resiliency News from Everywhere
        • East Side Coastal Resiliency Alternative Resources
    • Breathe
      • Breathe
      • LES Breathe
      • Sensors
      • Bad Air Days
      • Open Air Quality
      • Soil Foil
    • Synthetic Grass
      • Synthetic Grass
      • Synthetic Turf News
      • Research links on Artificial Turf
      • Proposed Real Grass Legislation in New York
      • Artificial Turf spills into East River, Lower East Side
      • Unnatural fields installed, East River Park, 2024
      • Temperatures of Artificial Turf, Lower East Side,
    • DONATE
    • Posts
    • ACTIONS NOW!
    © 2025 East River Park ACTION | Powered by Minimalist Blog WordPress Theme