New Park Partially Opens At Pier 42 On Lower East Side
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Officials on Saturday opened part of the new waterfront park at Pier 42 on the Lower East Side.
A new park is under construction at Pier 42, along the East River near the mouth of Governeur Street.
The partial opening Saturday made a section of the pier accessible to the public, as planning goes ahead for the development of the full park. The portion now open for interim use is located on the northern section of the pier between the greenway and the waterfront.
In November 2011, state Sen. Daniel Squadron (D-Manhattan) and U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced that they had secured Lower Manhattan Development Corporation funds to redevelop Pier 42. The pier has housed nothing but an abandoned warehouse and a parking lot.
Once completed the pier will create a continuous green ribbon along Lower Manhattan – connecting the East Side with the West and providing open space for the Lower East Side and Chinatown, according to a news release.
The section of the park that opened Saturday has been partially resurfaced, and picnic tables have been installed.
Squadron, along with Manhattan Borough Parks Commissioner William Castro, were on hand to open the park.
A Community Day was also held at the new park, as part of the New Museum of Contemporary Art's Idea City Festival. The event featured activities focused on community, art and river ecology.
The final design for the park at Pier 42 remains in the planning stages. The Parks Department and design consultants Mathews Nielsen landscape architects have met with Manhattan Community Board 3 and area residents to discuss the design, and master plan ideas will be presented at a public meeting this coming Thursday, at 30 Delancey St.
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