Rendering courtesy of Related Companies

“There has never been a wall along the High Line and there will never be a wall,” Hudson Yards emphasized on Twitter today in response to reports that a 700-foot wall will turn the next phase of development into a veritable gated community. Plans for the Western Yard always included paving over the remaining tracks with a deck that would slope down toward the High Line, but last week, it was reported that developer Related Companies was floating around an idea that would have the deck slope up instead to accommodate a parking garage underneath. It would also essentially wall off the new development’s green space and overshadow the High Line. However, Hudson Yards continued in its series of Tweets, “We have always shared the vision that the Western Yard should include a great public open space.”

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Renderings by Gabellini Sheppard Associates courtesy Tishman Speyer; via NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

Tishman Speyer proposed a plan to revamp certain aspects of Rockefeller Center during a hearing at the Landmark Preservation Commission on Tuesday, as CityRealty reported. With Gabellini Sheppard Associates at the helm, the design proposal makes tweaks to the gardens and outdoor plaza spaces at the 22-acre site. The upgrades—which mostly seek to improve circulation—come as city officials have been discussing the permanent restriction of traffic around Rockefeller Center following the successful pedestrianization of the area during the recent holiday season.

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Renderings courtesy of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office

This is what a renewed Erie Canal could look like in the years to come. Gov. Andrew Cuomo revealed a $300 million proposal on Monday to revamp the 19th-century waterway that was started by Gov. DeWitt Clinton in 1817. The multi-phase plan originates in research conducted by the “Reimagine the Canals” task force assembled by Cuomo last May. The first phase will begin later this year and comprises two parts: a $100 million economic development fund to invest in communities along the canal and $65 million toward preventing ice jams and flooding in the Schenectady area. The remaining $135 million will be allocated based on recommendations made in the task force’s report.

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All renderings © James Corner Field Operations and BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, courtesy of Two Trees Management

Two new mixed-use towers with 1,000 units of housing and six acres of public space have been proposed for the North Brooklyn waterfront. Two Trees Management on Thursday unveiled plans to bring two Bjarke Ingels Group-designed buildings, one at 650 feet and the other at 600 feet, on River Street between North 1st and North 3rd Street in Williamsburg. The buildings, with Metropolitan Avenue running between them, will serve as an entrance to the new waterfront space, part of a master plan designed in collaboration with BIG and James Corner Field Operations. The park and public beach would close the gap between Grand Ferry Park and North Fifth Park, eventually providing continuous access to the East River between South Williamsburg and Greenpoint.

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Courtesy of Matthews Nielsen Landscape Architecture, P.C. with attribution to W Architecture and Landscape Architecture, LLC

In May, the city announced plans to make Hudson Street between Canal and West Houston Streets in Hudson Square into a grand boulevard with wider sidewalks, parking-protected bike lanes, and small outdoor “living rooms” with seating surrounded by greenery are moving forward with design and construction teams on board. And now, work has officially commenced on the first phase of the project, shortly after Disney revealed its forthcoming Hudson Square headquarters, which will bring 5,000 new employees to the area.

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Rendering courtesy of Stantec

The creation of the East Midtown Greenway (EMG), a 1.5-acre public space stretching from East 53rd to 61st Streets along the waterfront, got underway Friday. The project, to be completed by 2022, is part of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway initiative to wrap the entire perimeter of Manhattan with accessible public spaces and safe bicycle paths. The midtown space will close one of the largest remaining gaps in the $250 million city initiative, announced by Mayor de Blasio in 2018, to connect 32 miles of Manhattan waterfront esplanade.

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Images: !melk/Hudson River Park Trust

Hudson River Park’s northernmost pier is being transformed from a concrete strip to nearly two acres of green space with an esplanade and other amenities, Curbed NY reports. Renderings from design firm !melk, who is working with the Hudson River Park Trust on the revamp of Pier 97, located off 12th avenue and 57th Street in Hell’s Kitchen, show a verdant respite from the city and din of the nearby West Side Highway. The vision for the new space at the gateway to Hudson River Park will consist of a series of connected spaces with walkways, sculptural canopies and a playground, with an elevated “belvedere” overlooking the river.

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Photo by Shinya Suzuki on Flickr cc

The MTA and the Partnership for New York City have announced the second round of the Transit Tech Lab accelerator program that launched earlier this year. The inaugural run selected six finalists to participate in an eight-week program dedicated to developing innovative, private sector solutions for the challenges facing our subway, bus, and rail services. Of those six, four companies have already started piloting their products with the MTA. The new round of submissions is specifically seeking entrepreneurs with products that improve accessibility (a major component of the MTA’s recently unveiled capital plan), enhance traffic coordination, or create new sources of revenue. Submissions are open through November 30.

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Preliminary design of Corlears shared use path; via DDC.

Borough President Gale A. Brewer and Council Member Carlina Rivera announced Thursday the completed report by independent consulting firm Deltares on the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project (ESCR). As 6sqft previously reported, the project was first developed in the wake of Hurricane Sandy and is intended to protect 2.2 miles of Manhattan’s East Side, between East 25th Street and Montgomery Street, from flooding and improve access to waterfront space. According to the city, the ESCR project would protect over 110,000 New Yorkers in the area.

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Photo by 6sqft

It’s been 10 years since Times Square went car-free along Broadway, with pedestrian plazas at Herald Square, Madison Square, Union Square North, Grand Army Plaza, and many more soon following. And now, a local Upper West Side group hopes the city will agree to do the same for the northbound stretch of Broadway from 73rd to 79th streets. As Streetsblog reported, last weekend, Streetopia Upper West Side hosted an event, “Celebrate Broadway,” where they closed this portion of the road and filled it with tables and hosted performances in hopes that the enthusiasm will lead to a permanent closure of traffic.

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