Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Billionaire Barry Diller Abandons Dream Of Levitating Park On The Hudson
By
Emma Whitford
Published Sep 14, 2017
Modified Sep 14, 2017
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 .
via Pier55, Inc. / Heatherwick Studio
By
Emma Whitford
Published Sep 14, 2017
Modified Sep 14, 2017
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
Billionaire Barry Diller has abandoned his controversial proposal for a $250 million floating park/performance venue in the Hudson River near 14th Street.
According to the NY Times, Diller decided to kill his pet project during settlement negotiations with the Hudson River Park Trust and the City Club, a small good government group opposed to the project.
"Because of the huge escalating costs and the fact it would have been a continuing controversy over the next three years I decided it was no longer viable for us to proceed," Diller told the paper.
The NY Times also quoted an email Diller sent to supporters to break the news. A "tiny group of people had used the legal system to essentially drive us crazy and drive us out," he charged.
The plan for Pier 55, initially approved in February 2015, came from Diller and his wife, fashion designer Diane von Furstenburg. The extremely wealthy couple planned to kick in $113 million to install 300 columns in the Hudson, designed to support a suspended, 2.5 acre park. Additional costs would fall to taxpayers, with funding for maintaining the park expected to come from concert proceeds.
The City Club is reportedly funded by real estate magnate Douglas Durst, who was a supporter of the nonprofit Friends of Hudson River Park, which raises funds for the Hudson River Park Trust, until he was "pushed out," the Times reports, in 2011. The City Club first sued to block Diller's park in 2015, arguing that the Hudson River Park Trust failed to provide adequate time for public comment, engaged in a harried environmental review process for a project located in a protected estuary, and "violated the public trust doctrine by alienating public parkland to Pier55, Inc., a private entity."
According to the suit, "Pier55, Inc. retains tremendous discretion over the use of the new structure, including the power to charge whatever they may want to charge for tickets to 49% of events held in the structures two event spaces."
Hudson River Trust President Madelyn Wils said in a statement that she is "deeply saddened" by this week's news.
The park "was thwarted by a small handful of people who decided they knew better," she added. "We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Diller-von Furstenberg family for their generosity and for dreaming big with us on the public's behalf."
The City Club, meanwhile, says it was pleasantly shocked.
"We are totally surprised by this development," attorney Richard Emery said in a statement. "We thought the negotiations were proceeding to a resolution. Diller's decision respects the legislature's intent to protect the Hudson as an estuary rather than an entertainment venue. In the end, all the Trust's machinations and secret deals backfired as they were destined to do from the beginning."
Tagged
Barry Diller
dead
floating park
lawsuit
Emma Whitford
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Your guide to voting in New York's 2026 elections for governor and Congress
A primer on the races for governor, attorney general and the congressional districts that could help determine control of the U.S. House.
By
Walter Wuthmann
,
Jon Campbell
and
Brigid Bergin
Published Oct 23, 2026 at 6:30 a.m. ET
Forest Hills Stadium can keep its concerts under deal with neighbors
Neighbors had complained of traffic and loud concerts for years.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Forest Hills Stadium can keep its concerts under deal with neighbors
Neighbors had complained of traffic and loud concerts for years.
By
Ryan Kost
NYC Council to grill Mamdani officials on collapsed Hunts Point Produce Market deal
By
Elizabeth Kim
NYPD arrests 17-year-old in fatal Midtown subway platform shooting
By
Charles Lane
Ex-Adams aide accused of pocketing kickbacks from community program funds
By
Samantha Max
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 .