Rep. Carolyn Maloney secured $475,000 in federal funding from the Surface Transportation Program and state funding from the Department of Environmental Conservation for a feasibility study of the engineering, design, landscaping and other planning related to the new esplanade for her East Side Congressional district and Tuesday the city's Economic Development Corporation issued a request for proposals for the study, according to an article today by Amy Zimmer at DNAinfo.com.

"The mayor has been staunchly advocating a green belt around Manhattan, but so far there has not been much concrete action in the east Midtown area," Maloney said in a statement. "This study will help us gain a better understanding of the costs and complications involved in building a new esplanade at this location."

Since Community Board 6 is among the areas most bereft of open space in the city, residents here have long sought new parks, and have eyed the 34,000-square-foot Pier 38 as a spot for one, the article said, adding that the former Con Edison site, from East 38th to East 41st streets, was originally built to receive coal deliveries, before it was transformed into a parking lot.

The structure would have to be renovated or reconstructed, according to the RFP. The Municipal Art Society is expected to host a design summit this summer with architects to envision how this pier could become a public jewel in the future, the RFP noted.

"The only way to get to this part of the waterfront now is through a cavernous urine-stenched passageway at East 37th Street," the article said.

"The feasibility study," the article continued, "would also focus on improving this connection to the waterfront as well as others, including at 42nd Street and possibly turning an existing elevated deck structure at East 48th Street that is part of the UN campus into a waterfront esplanade. Building the esplanade in front of the United Nations, of course, has another set of sticky issues. For one, coordination with the UN and NYPD on security issues would be necessary, the RFP pointed out."

"Rather than hiding our waterfront behind chain link fences and highways, we hope to see the day when we can actually enjoy the East River's shore," said Mark Thompson, chair of Community Board 6.

"It's a lot of money for a study, but this is a lot of work. It's not small potatoes," said Ellen Imbimbo, chair of CB6's waterfront committee. "It's a huge area and it will be a while before anything comes of it. But this will be a giant step forward in assessing the needs."

The submission deadline for the R.F.P. is May 9.

The Economic Development Corporation said it is seeking a consultant "to provide engineering, design, and planning services for the East Midtown Waterfront Esplanade and Greenway Project...[that will address the gap in the Manhattan Greenway between 38th Street and 60th Street along the East River and advance a coordinated planning effort while simultaneously providing new recreation amenities to the Midtown East community....The project is a significant and expensive undertaking without current capital funding. The work outlined in this RFP is needed to determine Project cost and feasibility."

The corporation will hold an "optional pre-proposal session April 18 at 9 AM at its offices at 110 William Street.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg's long-term waterfront plan, Vision 2020, called for significant improvements to this greenway gap. Bloomberg's plan echoed the community's desire for a public park at an East 38th Street pier, which has been sitting fallow since Con Edison sold the site in 2005.

The plan also called for an esplanade to be built on existing piles - left behind from a 2002 temporary FDR Drive roadway - between East 53rd to 59th streets.