Nearly one year after resurrecting talks about the fate of Inwood's Harlem River shoreline, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) unveiled its draft of a plan for Sherman Creek to community residents at Community Board 12 meeting February 1, according to an article yesterday by Carla Zanoni at DNAinfo.com.
The Sherman Creek Waterfront Esplanade Master Plan, which sketches the NYCEDC's "preferred design direction" for Sherman Creek from Dyckman to 207th streets, includes a waterfront esplanade, water access points, play space and a nature preserve, according the NYCEDC presentation to the community board.
The design incorporates suggestions made by community members during a study of the area performed in 2004 as well as a volunteer community advisory committee's work with landscape and urban planning consultants over the past year.
Although many residents said they were excited by the possibility of a continued overhaul of the shoreline, questions about funding sources and unresolved issues between the city and the area's largest real estate holder, Con Edison, could mean a redevelopment of this scale may still be years away.
The Sherman Creek Inlet was cleaned up by both groups in a joint effort with the New York Restoration Project, an environmental parks group, as well as the creation of a nearby pedestrian trail next to local elementary school P.S. 5.
Five "pocket parks" on West 202nd, 203rd, 204th, 205th, and 206th streets along the Harlem River were also added in 2008.
Despite these steps, the NYCEDC describes the Sherman Creek project as still in its infancy and said it plans to hold another community meeting in March in order to keep a dialogue going before a final plan is released.
The Sherman Creek inlet is to the east of Dyckman Houses and the planned esplanade would reach to the University Heights Bridge over the Harlem River. The southern end of the proposed plan is a bit to the north of High Bridge Park.
The Sherman Creek Waterfront Esplanade Master Plan, which sketches the NYCEDC's "preferred design direction" for Sherman Creek from Dyckman to 207th streets, includes a waterfront esplanade, water access points, play space and a nature preserve, according the NYCEDC presentation to the community board.
The design incorporates suggestions made by community members during a study of the area performed in 2004 as well as a volunteer community advisory committee's work with landscape and urban planning consultants over the past year.
Although many residents said they were excited by the possibility of a continued overhaul of the shoreline, questions about funding sources and unresolved issues between the city and the area's largest real estate holder, Con Edison, could mean a redevelopment of this scale may still be years away.
The Sherman Creek Inlet was cleaned up by both groups in a joint effort with the New York Restoration Project, an environmental parks group, as well as the creation of a nearby pedestrian trail next to local elementary school P.S. 5.
Five "pocket parks" on West 202nd, 203rd, 204th, 205th, and 206th streets along the Harlem River were also added in 2008.
Despite these steps, the NYCEDC describes the Sherman Creek project as still in its infancy and said it plans to hold another community meeting in March in order to keep a dialogue going before a final plan is released.
The Sherman Creek inlet is to the east of Dyckman Houses and the planned esplanade would reach to the University Heights Bridge over the Harlem River. The southern end of the proposed plan is a bit to the north of High Bridge Park.
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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