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Leave it to Santiago Calatrava, the golden boy of rebuild NYC design at the moment for his beautiful Port Authority transit hub planned for Ground Zero, to design a gorgeous tramway between lower Manhattan and Governor's Island. (The tramway isn't a certainty, but it's a great, flashy "This is what our future could be" symbol.) The city and state announced that they are looking for "visionary ideas for the redevelopment of Governor's Island" to promote these goals:
- Enhance New York’s place as a center for culture, business, education and innovation;The last one is always a bitch. Here is the RFP. This tramway-gondola system would cost $125 million and the three stations would be in Battery Park, at Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, and at Governor's Island. Here's hoping it can happen, given the restrictions on the island's use.
- Preserve and adaptively reuse historic structures;
- Create a public place and parkland for all New Yorkers;
- Contribute to the vitality of New York Harbor and link to the surrounding waterfronts;
- Promote environmentally sustainable development;
- Achieve financial self-sustainability and provide maximum return to GIPEC for the purpose of supporting public benefit uses.
Actually, we know what would be perfect for Governor's Island: Weddings. You get views of the city, people can book ferries to the location, guests who want to leave early take the gondola back to Manhattan or Brooklyn...
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can you imagine the views on that thing??
That view you have in the picture would be a total Calatrava picture. You'll be able to see his 80 South Street Tower in the background. That would be quite the amazing tableau.
I like how he includes Brooklyn in the plan. I imagine it would make a great tourist trip to walk over the Brooklyn Bridge and take the tram back over. It would totally encourage more foot traffic through downtown Brooklyn (but don't tell the Brooklyn Heights Association. They'd have a cow.)
Is it Calatrava's mad mission in life to completely screw up the downtown skyline? Jees...
Cute idea, but I don't get the whole linking-Manhattan-and-Brooklyn thing. Unless you happen to live a few blocks from the Brooklyn terminal, and are going to someplace a few blocks from the Manhattan terminal, it's going to be way easier to just jump on a train at Borough Hall. A for imagination, C- for practicality and use of cash.
They should just sell the entire island to some very rich people and use the proceeds to pay down some of the city's debt.
The talk of a city college campus is idealisitic but who really is going to want to commute out to an island?
how about le casino de new york?
Casinos and lotteries are a tax on those that suck at math. Or they have an addiction. Talk about regressive taxation. . .
It'll definitely work as a tourist attraction or a romantic excursion (at sunset or the evening) as well as a means to get to and from the island without ferries.
I doubt any locals would incorporate it into their daily commute if it isn't a free ride.
If the London Eye works, this'll work. I like it.
I sure hope they don't put a station on Atlantic Av/Columbia St since there's already enough congestion (people & vehicles) now. With more foot traffic, Brooklyn Heights will lose the tranquility that makes it such a nice place to live. We're going to have enough problems when Bklyn Br Park opens.
or they enjoy gambling?
"The talk of a city college campus is idealisitic but who really is going to want to commute out to an island?"
Who said you had to commute. Why not just build dorms there. The island is probably big enough to have some dorms placed there or just use the available housing that's there now. But then I doubt this will ever happen. They're looking for the biggest bang for their buck, whether that being a casino or some tourist destination/trap. Any thing that'll make them money.
You got to be kidding me? Are you serious... Let me say that as one of the few that was born and raised on Governor's island, in addition to being named after Fort Jay, I think this idea sucks out the beauty of lower Manhattan and especially Governor's Island. For those of you that have traveled to Governor's Island or lived there, the true essence of New York harbor is the waterways. This tramway, like most of the new projects in nyc tend to tell the tale of "Hey, look at me!! There's nothing else pretty around me!!! Focus everything on me!!" Of course other projects need to make a statement and can carry that trait but really look at that picture above with the tramway and tell me, "Does that add to the beauty of New York? or suck the life out of it?" Santiago is a great designer but new projects in new york harbor, especially dealing with so much beauty and history of the harbor, has to augment to it and not erase or "say look at me!!!"
-Jay