As of December 2021, more than 50 percent of East River Park has been demolished. The Southern end below Houston became a ruin, with hundreds of mature, healthy trees felled. In September 2025, that section reopened. Demolition of the northern end of the park began. Part of our original mission–to stop the destruction–is no longer possible. The rest of the mission stands. It is essential for the health of our Lower East Side and East Village. Join us.
East River Park Action seeks environmental justice for our park and the Lower East Side community it serves.
• We seek to improve the health and well being of the community with an environmentally sound, biodiverse, beautiful park and surrounding area that serves our neighborhood.
• The new parkland should be revised in an environmentally forward-thinking manner. We need to stop the use of unhealthy artificial turf and need expedited planting of natural areas.
• We supported further expansion of East River Park over the FDR and new concepts for use of the highway as a way to improve the health of our neighborhood and our world climate. We have been given a hard NO on this proposal. It’s still a good idea but on hiatus for now.
• We can find creative and greener solutions that enhance rather than devastate the health and beauty of our Lower East Side and East Village Communities.
Who We Are
Several Lower East Side residents started East River Park Action in June 2019 to demand a revised flood control plan that will not deprive our neighborhood of our glorious park for years. We were some of the founding members of East River Alliance in early 2019, an organization that decided to advocate responsible stewardship and accountability working with the new East Side Coastal Resiliency project. East River Park Action formed to express vocal opposition to the project when less destructive plans were possible.
Many others residents from the neighborhood–and from around the city–were eager to join the effort. Our all-volunteer group grew.
• Hundreds participated in rallies, protests, hearings, and outreach campaigns. Read about and see videos from one of our marches and rallies: https://eastriverparkaction.org/2021/04/19/big-march-to-save-the-park/
• We have a LES Breathe Team that developed a people’s air monitoring system to protect our neighborhood.
• We were lead plaintiff in a lawsuit that appealed for alienation from the state to gain oversight and demand accountability from the City. Read about it: https://eastriverparkaction.org/2021/05/03/alienation-lawsuit-appeal/ We lost our final appeal Dec. 16, 2021 when the state’s highest court, the Court of Appeals, turned down our request for appeal. We have been repeatedly criticized for delaying this flood control project. The city itself was responsible for all delays except for a 28-day stall when our lawsuit was pending.
• We are also sued the city to see the three-year-old unredacted Value Engineering Study that we uncovered via a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) and appeal. Read about it here: https://eastriverparkaction.org/2021/04/05/lawsuit-filed-for-unredacted-value-engineering-report/ (We finally received the heavily redacted report, which showed reasonable alternatives to the current ESCR. It’s a heartbreaker to learn how we could have had the same flood protection without the total destruction of the park.)
• We became a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. We are a peaceful, nonviolent grassroots group that plans collaboratively.
• More than 16,000 have signed various petitions with us and other informally affiliated groups, and more than 2,400 people have signed up on our mailing list.
• We have raised more than $70,000 from more than 600 donors for our legal fund and other activities. Most donations are in the $10-$25 range, reflecting the modest-income nature of our neighborhood. We are not Brooklyn Heights that could raise $100,000 in a few days to squash the idea of demolishing the Brooklyn Heights promenade for a few years for rebuilding of the BQE. Please donate.
• We are a member of the Coalition to Protect Chinatown and the Lower East Side. We work together to improve lives in our neighborhood by advocating for zoning to prevent rampant gentrification and to advocate for worker rights.
• We’ve generated press coverage and an active social media presence at @ERPaction.
Please email if you would like to participate:
OurPark@EastRiverParkAction.org