Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
$1.45 Billion Plan To Elevate East River Park Advances, Despite Some Local Opposition
By
Izzie Ramirez
Published Nov 13, 2019
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Izzie Ramirez / Gothamist
By
Izzie Ramirez
Published Nov 13, 2019
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The East Side Coastal Resiliency Project—the $1.45 billion plan to protect downtown Manhattan's east side against global heating and sea level rise—is one step closer to becoming reality. The City Council’s Land Use committee voted Tuesday 14-0 to move the climate plan forward, setting the stage for a full council vote on Thursday.
The ESCRP aims to protect 2.4 miles of coastline by raising the level of East River Park eight feet and installing a series of flood gates along the FDR. In an about-face last year, the de Blasio administration said the plan would require a complete closure of the 45-acre park for three years. In October, after months of public meetings and protests, the city agreed to complete the construction work in phases, with work beginning in the fall of 2020 and wrapping up by the end of 2025. Roughly half of the park will remain open at all times during the construction.
Local activists with the East River Park Action and East River Alliance say the city hasn’t done enough to address their concerns.
They argue that the current version of the plan will still leave the community vulnerable to flooding, uproot nearly 1,000 trees, and severely limit park access.
“The plan is about mitigating the construction,” said Harriet Hirshorn, an East River Alliance member. “No one is talking about the destruction of the park.”
The largest concern is that the ESCRP provides no interim flood protection measures. As of right now, East River Park acts as the only protective flood barrier this area has. But once under construction, 110,000 residents will be at risk if another strong superstorm hits during this rebuilding period. Approximately a quarter of this population live across 11 NYCHA developments adjacent to the construction areas.
An independent review, commissioned by East Village Councilmember Carlina Rivera and Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, also noted the risk of a flood while the work on the park is ongoing.
“During construction, when parts of the park are closed and the trees are removed, a severe storm would not only damage the exposed park (equipment, hazardous materials, Con Edison lines, etc.) but may also propagate into the neighborhood more easily without being dampened by the ‘roughness’ of the park,” the review states, recommending that the city look into installing sandbags and deployable barriers, or other interim flood protection measures.
Members of groups opposing the plan wore all black to mourn the "death" of the park.
Izzie Ramirez / Gothamist
Rivera acknowledged this gap in an interview with Gothamist and said the city is in the process of “reevaluating these IFPMs” and will likely prioritize flood protection in areas that were worst affected by Hurricane Sandy.
The councilmember added that she has pushed for the city to address community concerns like soil and air testing and noise monitoring. The ESCRP will primarily affect Rivera’s district alongside Councilmember Keith Powers and Councilmember Margaret Chin’s districts.
“This agreement was based primarily on the ideas and feedback that members of our communities offered to make implementation of this plan better than what was originally presented,” Rivera said at the vote. “I’m proud that our agreement includes nearly every commitment we requested, from phased, safe, and timely ESCR construction, to parks and NYCHA improvements, to re-examining interim flood protections and studying bikeways and the future of the FDR.”
Another consideration for the vote is $335 million in grant money from HUD. That money—earned through the Rebuild by Design competition begun after Sandy to build climate adaptation projects—is set to expire soon. Although the city has also invested a separate $1 billion budget for the ESCRP, councilmembers said they did not want to let that federal money go to waste.
Per the city’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, the City Council will vote on the ESCRP on Thursday, which will be followed by the mayor’s vote and a finalization of the design by Department of Design and Construction. Construction will begin in earnest in the fall of 2020.
Tagged
east river park
Izzie Ramirez
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
NJ reports first West Nile Virus death of the year
While the national West Nile Virus trend has slowed down, activity in the Garden State has picked up.
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Oct 4, 2026 at 11:03 a.m. ET
NY's prison system is in crisis. It's driving staff away from the job.
The state is currently struggling with a 56% vacancy rate among prison workers.
By
Emily Russell
News
NY's prison system is in crisis. It's driving staff away from the job.
The state is currently struggling with a 56% vacancy rate among prison workers.
By
Emily Russell
NYPD searching for suspect after fatal stabbing in Queens
By
Ben Feuerherd
NYPD: 2 suspects in off-duty officer stabbing tried to rob victim
By
Jill Webb
Astoria-born Chip City announces sudden closure days after former CEO sues
By
Catalina Gonella
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .