The waterfront committee of Community Board 1 passed a resolution December 21 backing Mayor Michael Bloomberg's plan to turn Governors Island into a city-operated park if the city commits to expanding ferry service and adding recreational facilities and calls for Community Board approval of all future construction on the island, according to an article yesterday by Matt Dunning in The TriBeCa Trib.
The city shares control of the island with New York State by way of a joint public benefit corporation, but if the city takes full control as the Mayor hopes, the city will commit millions of city dollars to developing and maintaining the park.
The island was a US Coast Guard outpost from 1966 until 1996. In 2003, the city/state-run Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation (GIPEC) took control of 150 acres of the island. In 2009, according to the article, GIPEC estimated more than 275,000 people - up from around 8,000 in 2005 - visited the island for the art exhibits, concerts, youth sporting events low-cost bike rentals.
The Governors Island Alliance, a coalition of about 50 community groups, cultural and educational organizations with an interest in the island's development, has supported the city's bid for control of the island. At the committee meeting, according to the article, Rob Pirani, executive director of the alliance said that "while the city and the state have made a tremendous amount of progress, we've gotten to a place where the island is starting to feel like a part of the city," adding that "The decision-making process for the island seems a little broken. We think the island would be better off with a single owner and a single management structure."
The city shares control of the island with New York State by way of a joint public benefit corporation, but if the city takes full control as the Mayor hopes, the city will commit millions of city dollars to developing and maintaining the park.
The island was a US Coast Guard outpost from 1966 until 1996. In 2003, the city/state-run Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation (GIPEC) took control of 150 acres of the island. In 2009, according to the article, GIPEC estimated more than 275,000 people - up from around 8,000 in 2005 - visited the island for the art exhibits, concerts, youth sporting events low-cost bike rentals.
The Governors Island Alliance, a coalition of about 50 community groups, cultural and educational organizations with an interest in the island's development, has supported the city's bid for control of the island. At the committee meeting, according to the article, Rob Pirani, executive director of the alliance said that "while the city and the state have made a tremendous amount of progress, we've gotten to a place where the island is starting to feel like a part of the city," adding that "The decision-making process for the island seems a little broken. We think the island would be better off with a single owner and a single management structure."
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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