Milestone celebrated for Manhattan’s coastal resiliency project

The first phase of the East River Park is officially open to the public, marked by a ribbon-cutting hosted by the New York City Department of Design and Construction. Following the original 2014 vision for 10 miles of protective park and public realm in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, the quarter-mile stretch in Manhattan brings a variety of new amenities to the Lower East Side community, including basketball and tennis courts, picnic and BBQ areas, a multi-use turf field, open lawn space, and inviting zones for nature exploration and water play. As a key part of the larger 1.45bn USD East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) project that will protect 110,000 New Yorkers, the opening marks a major milestone in the city’s efforts to reduce flood risk and build a more resilient waterfront. 

Tenderstream member BIG developed the original concept for coastal protection around lower Manhattan, and was part of the ESCR design team. Bjarke Ingels, BIG founder & creative director, stated: “With the opening of the first phase of East River Park, we see the first physical manifestation of a decade-long vision: an archipelago of parks forming an elevated, undulating new landscape – a ‘park-ipelago’, if you will. Each island of green is devoted to a use and character decided by the community. Rather than separating the city from the waterfront, we’ve designed a public realm that invites people in with new connections across the FDR Drive, transforming flood protection into a tapestry of everyday experiences. The result is infrastructure that not only strengthens but also enhances the city’s coastline. It protects, connects, and inspires – proof that the future of our cities can be both safe from flood and full of life."

ESCR is employing raised parkland, floodwalls, berms and 18 swinging or sliding flood gates to create a continuous line of protection against sea level rise and the growing threat of stronger, more severe coastal storms worsened by climate change. The openings this week will be followed soon by new closures in the northern area of the park so that work on ESCR can continue. East Side Coastal Resiliency is projected to be completed and the full East River Park opened in early-2027. 

Lucy Nordberg

Tenderstream Head of Research

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