Funds obtained for East Side waterfront study

Rendering of proposed open space on the waterfront

Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been secured for studying the costs and challenges of transforming the now closed stretch from 38th to 60th streets along the East River into a public waterfront, according to DNAinfo. The project received $475,000 in federal and state funding for a viability study of engineering, design, landscaping and other planning related to the proposed developments. Residents and local politicians have expressed a desire for a public park at the former Con Edison waterfront pier spanning from 38th to 41st streets, which has been vacant since it was sold 2005. Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s long-term waterfront plan, Vision 2020, calls for major improvements to the strip, including an esplanade to be constructed between 53rd and 59th streets on a location of a temporary FDR Drive roadway erected in 2002. The city is also considering striking a deal with the United Nations by granting it permission to build on part of the Robert Moses Playground on First Avenue at 41st Street in exchange for public access to their waterfront property. [DNAinfo]