Results tagged “brooklynbridgepark”

            

If you've been to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade or Brooklyn Landing recently, you've probably noticed lots of work going on at the Brooklyn Bridge Park site. We were curious about what's been happening, and asked the Brooklyn Bridge Park Development Corporation to give us a tour of the current site. While things are still very much under construction now, they told us that parts of the park will open as early as the end of this year.

Despite the gloomy financial climate, the Brooklyn Flea is thriving and expanding this summer! Time to break those piggy banks, because the press release sent out today states that the market will set up shop under the Brooklyn Bridge on Sundays starting June 14th (and running through October). The Flea will still be at their Fort Greene location on Saturdays (much to some of the locals dismay), and Brooklyn Flea/Brownstoner founder Jonathan Butler notes that the pop-up Flea in DUMBO will also remain open through May. The press release also takes a moment to check in on construction at Brooklyn Bridge Park, and notes that the first phase of development will be complete by the end of the year, when both Pier 1 (adding 9.5 new acres of park) and Pier 6 (adding 7 acres) finally take shape.

      

In 2004 park officials retained landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates to design the new waterfront for Brooklyn Bridge Park. His solution to mute the traffic noise coming off the BQE was to erect a physical barrier between the roadway and the landscaped area, but some folks have declared that this current $7 million solution has numerous problems (most notably that it simply won't work).

Mayor Bloomberg sent a strong message to state officials negotiating with the city on a deal that would end state involvement in Governors Island and Brooklyn Bridge Park. Speaking to reporters about the $350 million Brooklyn Bridge Park project yesterday, Bloomberg said, "If they are not willing to turn it over to us, we'll turn it over to them. But then we're not going to put city money in, obviously."

Last week Mayor Bloomberg admitted he was working out a deal to take over from the state two major park projects on Governors Island and Brooklyn Bridge Park; the latter is an ambitious, 85-acre park that would stretch 1.3 miles from the north side of the Manhattan Bridge to Atlantic Avenue. The renderings look great, but the project has been hobbled in part because the state hasn't committed the money, leaving a budget shortfall of some $120 million. But some sections of the development are actually moving forward: Last night Brooklyn Bridge Park Development Corporation President Regina Myer told Community Board 2 that the southern section of the park at Pier 6 will be open by the end of the year. According to Brooklyn Heights Blog, Meyer promised three sand volleyball courts, a huge playground, a dog run, lots of trees, and a restaurant. The remainder of the pier—including the water taxi dock—is not yet funded, but the rest of the park on Pier 6 will supposedly be a finished... just in time for winter!

A spokesperson for Governor Paterson's office confirmed that talks were ongoing but stressed that no resolution had been reached. Governors Island has become an increasingly popular weekend recreation destination since it was opened to the public in 2003. It's run jointly by the city and state, but Paterson's budget does not include any money for the park this year, and yesterday the Governors Island board of directors imposed an austerity budget of $11.8 million, down from $18.8 million, while acknowledging that the remaining $550,000 in its operating budget will be exhausted by the end of the month.

You’ll recall the big stink surrounding the city’s demolition (pictured) of the 1930s-era Art Deco Purchase building by the base of the Brooklyn Bridge in DUMBO – preservationists fought to save it, then the city tore it down to make way for the oft-delayed Brooklyn Bridge Park. The land the building occupied was supposed to be turned into a beautiful Euro-style piazza and skating rink by fall 2009, according to estimates by the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy. Unsurprisingly, that’s not going to happen for at least five years because the DOT, which still owns the property, needs it to do repairs on the bridge. City Councilman David Yassky, whose district includes the park, tells the Post:

We all know how the bureaucracy works – a few years will become five years, and then 10 years, and then you can kiss that section of the park goodbye. This land was promised for parkland, and it should stay that way. Surely DOT can store its equipment somewhere else nearby.

         

The conversion of an 85-acre stretch of Brooklyn waterfront from post-industrial decay to pristine park is continuing apace, as bulldozers have begun demolishing the hulking warehouses that have barred access to the East River for years. But a Sierra Club lawsuit could yet stall the long-planned urban renewal project, and outcry from some community groups remains undiminished.

Everyone is buzzing about the Brooklyn Bridge Park development today. The latest is that the project (which has been stalled time and time again) could begin next month as a wrecking ball tears down a piece of the area's history. The Daily News reports:

If approved today, the $18 million construction phase would include the demolition of the historic Purchase Building [pictured] and the removal of portions of five piers, officials said.

Continue reading "Demolition to Begin Brooklyn Bridge Park Development"

Got a tidbit for us? Send it to the feedbag.

MUSIC: There's no better way to end the week by heading over to the Seaport Music Festival on a Friday evening. Sit on the pier with a glass of wine and watch some bands as the sun goes down. The water and ships provide the perfect summer backdrop. Tonight Fujiya & Miyagi will get you moving with some dance beats and Black Moth Super Rainbow will stick to the synth-rock.

The Floating Pool opened at Brooklyn Bridge Park yesterday to visitors (a "decent sized" crowd showed up) . However, there are some lingering issues, thanks to yesterday's rainy weather. Reader Drew went to visit the pool today and wrote to us:

Unfortunately, after being open only one day to the public, it was closed. The director, a very nice woman, explained that the rain from yesterday flooded some of the ballast tanks and tilted the entire barge. So basically one end of the pool had 2 feet of water, and the other end was overflowing. They did let some of the public on the barge to check it out and take some pictures, but the pool is closed all day while engineers attempt to fix the problem. We'll see if this gets resolved by tomorrow.

New York's own floating pool is opening tomorrow! The concept was that of Ann Buttenwieser, founder of the Neptune Foundation and a former manager of City Parks. The water on water can be found at Brooklyn Bridge Park, it's free and open from 11am to 7pm (the beach is open from 9am to 9pm) - seven days a week.

Earlier this year, The Sun reported that AvalonBay Communities would "begin construction this summer on a 42-story, residential market-rate tower with approximately 600 units. The property will have ground floor retail, which could house the borough's first Trader Joe's market." And even earlier this year it was suspected that TJ's would move into One Brooklyn Bridge Park.

One casualty of MAS's proposal would be the Robert Moses Playground, home of the East End Hockey Association. The mostly featureless lot hosts the local roller hockey league, which is claiming that Robert Moses Playground is the only area of its type on the East Side that it can use. MAS is proposing that the playground be traded to the U.N., which would build a 35-story tower on the land, in exchange for waterfront access to complete the greenway.

May 12: Brooklyn Pigfest

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a man was killed by a 6 Train at Manhattan's Bleecker St. station, a serious multi-vehicle accident on Grand Concourse and East 168th St. in the Bronx, and an evidence search followed a shooting on Beach Channel Dr. in Queens.
• The $250 nine course tasting menu at Per Se is the caloric equivalent of 4 and a half Big Macs, although we imagine infinitely more delicious. A prost-prandial stroll would have to be 31 miles long to walk it all off.
• Curbed reports that the former Jehovah's Witness Building in Brooklyn Bridge Park is getting the borough's first Trader Joe's.
• Brooklyn blogger and bicyclst eefers relates that she was nearly run down by a red light-running police car. When she physically indicated her displeasure at nearly being another bicyclist casualty of New York's traffic, one of the officers hurled her paper cup at her before the partners sped off. Rude certainly, but we imagine some citizens have endured worse.
• Appreciators can now purchase prints of artist Noah Kalina's "everyday" project, which are digital self-portraits taken every day for six years.
• It may do a body good, but milk will also slim your wallet. The price of a gallon of milk is rising to $3.54––up $.60 over the price a year ago.
• It's estimated that subway riders save roughly $1 billion annually using unlimited monthly and weekly metrocards. Only 12% of riders pay the full $2 a trip.
• The driver of the black SUV that struck and killed a Brooklyn boy last night and then sped off was arrested. He faces multiple criminal charges, including manslaughter.

One of the best things about Easter always occurring on a Sunday is that you can spend your Saturday doing cool stuff like submerging hardboiled eggs in colored dyes smelling of vinegar, going from K-Mart to Target to K-Mart again trying to find that perfect Easter basket to fill with cellophane grass, putting the finishing touches on one's bonnet, or perhaps just enjoying one of the first weekends of spring knowing that a good portion of the city is in holiday-mode, so we can all just relax.

Untitled, by Shveckle.

Lower East Side, by Joe Holmes.

• If you break down the numbers, the MTA pays an average of $2,000 to escort homeless people from the subways; in related news, Camp Laguardia, the biggest shelter to serve NYC, is being closed
• The Brooklyn Bridge Park could actually cost $300 million - not the $150 million budgeted - to develop
• Yesterday, a water main broke in Central Park, causing flooding to the whole 96th Street Transverse

The lawsuit brought by the Brooklyn Bridge Park Defense Fund against the state and city over leasing land to private developers was dismissed by a state judge yesterday. While the Brooklyn Bridge Park Defense Fund had been fine with earlier plans for private development as the state worked to add 85 acres of parkland to the area, when the number of condos increased sharply, a lawsuit was filed. The state's argument was that the private development would help create revenue to sustain the park. From the NY Sun:

The judge, Lawrence Knipel of state Supreme Court in Brooklyn, struck down [the BBPDF's claim that the state "violated" a public trust doctrine by leasing parkland to developers]. The parcels that will go to developers, Judge Knipel ruled, "are not parkland, have never been parkland and were never designated to become parkland."

Continue reading "Judge Tosses Brooklyn Bridge Park Lawsuit"

Wykoff Street Houses in Gowanus, by Vinnie716.

SHOPPING: Get ready to do some defensive shopping at the Barneys mega warehouse sale. It only comes twice a year, and this one runs til September 4th. So psych yourself up for some shoppin' before all the good stuff is gone.

The Times today takes a look at the Brooklyn Bridge Park fight that's been brewing for a while now. A quick recap: Everybody basically agrees that an 85-acre park at the base of the Brooklyn Bridge is a wonderful idea. In 2002 the city and state agreed to pay up the $150 million that would be required to convert the land from Atlantic Avenue to Jay Street into usable parks. But as parks aren't cheap to maintain the question quickly rose as to how exactly to pay for the maintenance of the land. The solution that the city and state, along with the newly formed Brooklyn Bridge Park Development Corporation, agreed on was private real estate development. More specifically a hotel, a restaurant, some box stores and some residential units. About 1,200 "luxury" units to be exact (up from an initial estimate of 700 units).

The city has stepped up to the challenge and will join NY State as a co-defendent in the lawsuit to stop the redevelopment of Brooklyn Bridge Park. Last month, a bunch of civic groups banded together to sue the state, which is overseeing the project, because there are now 1,200 condos in the mix. The Brooklyn Bridge Park Defense Fund, which filed suit, told the NY Sun, "There will be Fresh Direct trucks delivering groceries. When a child decides to kick a ball, it will bounce off of someone's house."

- And click the Food Fund for Animals button and money will be donated for needy animals

Metro has an interview with ESDC chairman Charles Gargano, who says he wants to get "Brooklyn Bridge Park up to a level where work can begin in early ’07." Interestingly enough, a bunch of civic groups and the Sierra Club have joined together and sued to stop construction of Brooklyn Bridge Park over the inclusion of high-end real estate. Originally, the plan was to put 700 condos in to offset some of the park's operating expenses - but then the number of condos went to 900, and now the plan has 1200. The lawsuit claims that the Empire State Development Corporation has been "rewriting" the rules when it comes to planning the park.

The weather forecast, which predicted rain, might have scared some people off, but we were going to the Brooklyn Brewery's Sixth Annual Pigfest come rain or shine. Luckily, we had sunshine galore, so we were able to sample some amazing barbecue without trying to juggle an umbrella along with our ribs, chicken, pulled pork and beer.

Rain or shine, there will be cold beer, live music, and Niman Ranch pork and chicken slow-cooked by the Waterfront Alehouse's own Sam Barbieri, Steve Harkavy, Bon Soir Caterers' Jeff Reilly, and Rob Richter of Big Island Barbeque. Proceeds from this year's event go to the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy. Beer and Food are included with admission. Advance tickets $75. At the door $85. 1PM-6PM at the Tobacco Warehouse in Brooklyn Bridge Park (corner of Water and Dock Sts., DUMBO).