First Section Of New East River Waterfront Esplanade Is Opened

The section is just south of the South Street Seaport in Lower Manhattan. The first phase - from Wall Street to Maiden Lane - is part of a larger $165 million project that is revitalizing a once neglected two-mile stretch of City-owned land along the water's edge from the tip of Lower Manhattan to East River Park north of the Manhattan Bridge.

The new esplanade - open to the public from 6:00 AM to midnight - provides a place for residents, office workers and visitors to Lower Manhattan to enjoy the waterfront. Along the new esplanade are plantings and trees comprised of native coastal species, as well as seating elements evocative of the area's maritime past. Elevated bar stool seating offers visitors an opportunity to sit next to the railing and look out over the water toward Brooklyn.

The railing at the bar also doubles as a tabletop on which users can eat, use a laptop or read. The esplanade also features chaise lounges, game tables, planter walls and waterside benches. The "Look-Out," a series of stadium-like steps leading to the water at the foot of Wall Street, enables visitors to sit and observe the water with unobstructed views. A new state-of-the-art dog park features a climbing bridge, sand pit, splash pad and dog house.

The entire esplanade is unified by a newly installed purple girder underneath the FDR Drive that will be illuminated at night and visible over the esplanade and across the river.

The esplanade stretches to Pier 11 at Wall Street, one of the stops on the City's new East River Ferry Service launched by Mayor Bloomberg and Speaker Quinn in June 2011. The new service will provide year-round ferry transportation between East 34th Street and Pier 11 in Manhattan, Long Island City in Queens, Greenpoint, North Williamsburg, South Williamsburg, and DUMBO in Brooklyn.

Future sections currently under construction include additional portions of the esplanade from the Battery Maritime Building to Wall Street, a restaurant pavilion at Maiden Lane, a redeveloped Pier 15, and a restroom pavilion at John Street. Pier 15, a 500-foot-long pier evocative of historical two-level piers, is expected to open in Fall 2011, featuring lawns for picnicking and sunbathing on the upper level, where users can enjoy the East River from an elevated perspective. The lower level will have an active dock, a maritime educational pavilion and a café, as well as an abundance of seating opportunities and plantings.

In addition to the five pavilions that are currently planned along the esplanade and on Pier 15, it is anticipated that the open space under the FDR will allow for temporary programs and events such as farmers' markets, performances, exhibitions and community gatherings.

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2011