October 31st, 2005 marked the long awaited groundbreaking of the West Harlem Waterfront Park. The project will transform a parking lot located between St. Claire Place and 133rd Street streets and Marginal Street in Manhattan into a one-acre park and mark as one of New York’s newest public waterfront parks. The project is an important step towards the revitalization of the Harlem waterfront and its surrounding neighborhood. The creation of West Harlem Waterfront Park began in 1998 when the West Harlem Environmental Action (WEACT) partnered with Community Board 9 to create the Harlem-on-the-River project. Together, they worked with residents, community groups, local officials, and the New York City Parks Department to develop a design that would increase the accessibility of Harlem’s waterfront and raise support for the adjoining neighborhoods of Northern Manhattan. In 2000, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) announces plans to develop a master plan based on the Harlem-on-the-River community plan. Two years later EDC announces beginning of the design process. This past October the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers cleared the projects’ construction plans. The development of the $18.7 million project is about more than simply creating a new green space in New York City. With the park, will come new bicycle and pedestrian paths connecting the West Harlem waterfront to the rest of the Manhattan waterfront Greenway - the bike path that follows Manhattan’s shoreline as it circles the island. When finished, the Greenway will total 32 miles and the section that runs through the West Harlem Waterfront Park is an important step towards its final completion. The Park plans also call for a recreational pier, fishing and general public enjoyment, and a second pier for commercial docking which will accommodate water taxis and other vessels operating on the Hudson. The Park is being funded by contributions from numerous sources including the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone, the Manhattan Borough President, the City Council, the State Department of Parks, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the State and the City of New York. Park construction began on February 27, 2006 and has begun be and it is expected that the park will be completed in 2007.

Newsletter Issue

• 2006 Spring EcoPolitics