convenient planning for inconvenient truths: A PLAN TO protect our coastlines from climate disaster
THE PROBLEM
In 2012 Hurricane Sandy swept over New York City and revealed how vulnerable Lower Manhattan is to coastal storm surge events. Enormous damage was done to our community, with 21,000 homes subjected to flooding, thousands of jobs lost in the wake of the disaster, as well as significant damage done to our transportation systems, public utilities, and water and sewer systems.
A range of climate-related hazards looms in the near future of Lower Manhattan. Already Sandy-like storms and chronic weather conditions like extreme precipitation and heatwaves are occurring with increasing frequency. In 80 years, intense hurricanes will be 50% more likely to occur and daily tidal flooding is expected to impact 20% of the streets in the district. Rising sea and groundwater levels will damage underground infrastructure by destabilizing building foundations, overwhelming our sewer systems, and threatening transportation and utilities.
The City has numerous climate resiliency (CR) projects underway to protect our coastlines and neighborhood: East Side Resiliency Project (ESCR), Pier 42, Brooklyn Bridge Montgomery Coastal Resiliency (BMCR), Financial District and Seaport Climate Resilience Master Plan, and the various projects under Battery Park City Authority (BPCA). It is not enough to leave these projects in the hands of city agencies and private developers. Christopher Marte believes we must stay engaged in the implementation of each of these projects and proactively fight for the future of our neighborhoods before they are wiped off the map.
The Marte campaign will take a 3-part approach to ensure that climate resiliency and climate justice are achieved in Lower Manhattan:
Make sure each Coastal Resiliency project protects the community by prioritizing at-risk neighborhoods and ensure the project remains publicly-controlled so that private corporations do not profiteer off of climate change
Improve community engagement by making meetings and presentations more transparent, accessible, and responsive to community input. Advocate for one agency to coordinate and oversee all Coastal Resiliency projects
Fight to preserve the identity of the neighborhoods affected by coastal resiliency projects and protect the public’s access to waterfronts
THE SOLUTIONS
Coastal resiliency projects must protect the community against climate-related hazards. First and foremost, all of Lower Manhattan’s coastal resiliency plans must prevent imminent and long-term climate-related hazards, ranging from storm surges, to rising sea levels, to daily tidal inundation, to heat waves, to heat-island effect and extreme precipitation. Marte will evaluate and support plans based on both the appropriateness of the design in regards to the unique topographies and needs of each neighborhood, and on the thoroughness of community engagement measures to make sure residents have a voice. Climate change threats must be addressed with projects that are environmentally just, forward-thinking, and maintain as much existing park space as possible.
Plans must meet Interim Flood Protection Measures to ensure that vulnerable neighborhoods are protected for 15-year storms, until long-term protection plans are implemented. Any projects should provide protection well into the next century. Areas with lower elevation and most at-risk for flooding should be prioritized in project designs such as Two Bridges, Lower East Side, FiDi/Seaport, The Battery, and Tribeca.
All coastal resiliency projects must be publicly-owned so that private and commercial interests do not profiteer off of climate change. Commercial interests should not be allowed to infiltrate these projects by seeking to occupy waterfront space and potentially sabotaging protective design elements for the sake of profit. This is a particular concern in the planned shoreline extension of the FiDi/Seaport areas where new land space will be built. All waterfront spaces should be free and accessible to the public. Our “country place in the city”, Governors Island, should be preserved as open green space for the long-term, benefitting the entire city. Publicly owned CR projects will also give the City more leverage in these projects to ensure that they not only create resiliency, but secure union jobs with high labor standards and practices.
District 1 needs a City Councilmember who holds the Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and Department of Design & Construction (NYCDDC), the two main actors in designing and constructing the infrastructure, accountable to their deadlines. CR projects are crucial to protecting the very existence of our neighborhoods against climate threats, but the process of construction may temporarily disrupt people’s access to large swaths of public space. Plans should be developed to store construction materials and vehicles at lots nearby, and not overtake open space. There should be clear deadlines for when all on-site parking and materials have to be moved, so lots don’t get taken over as seemingly permanent storage sites. Access to existing parks, open streets and open space should be maintained for as long as possible, and never entirely shut down. Projects must be completed on time in order to address our climate crisis, and residents’ continuous need for fresh air. As Councilmember, Marte will pressure the EDC and DDC to be on track through legislation and mandate public reporting on progress.
Marte will also advocate for projects to be fully funded through secure channels by working with City officials or state/federal representatives, and be transparent about the full cost and source of funding. CR projects should not be allowed to dig up existing public spaces only to run out of funding resulting in unfinished or unapproved infrastructure. Marte does not support design-build as a tool for any CR plans.
Community engagement is integral to successful coastal resiliency projects because of the large-scale nature of their impacts during and after construction on neighborhoods and public spaces. City Councilmembers should be present at all project presentations, alongside residents, neighborhood leaders, and informed representatives from City agencies, private developers, and nonprofits. Video recordings and meeting notes should be made public for each CR project and available in multiple languages. Public presentations and meetings must be accessible to non-English speakers, (e.g. through the use of Zoom breakout rooms with interpreters as demonstrated by the BMCR December 2020 presentation). Appointed community advisory groups should be representative of community demographics and CR project use groups.
Marte will demand true engagement from the EDC, DDC, and Mayor’s Office of Resiliency (MOR) who should actively contact residents and community leaders to alert them of updates and upcoming presentations and meetings, as opposed to passively announcing them online. In addition, Marte will bring an audience of experts from the community to the forefront of conversations, to better scrutinize the details of CR plans with engineers, Ccity planners, architects, environmentalists, and elected officials. Comprehensive and effective plans rely not just on science, but on preparedness training, and on-the-ground experience during storms.
Lastly, Marte will advocate for the establishment of one, overarching platform or agency to oversee climate resiliency projects as a whole, whether it’s City Council, MOR, or another agency. Climate change does not impact districts separately, but rather the city as a whole. Implementing projects while each legislative district works within their own jurisdictions doesn’t make sense. We need one coordinating agency that communicates how all plans work together and how neighborhoods sitting in between district borders can easily advocate for themselves so that we are all protected. This agency should also oversee the incorporation of public input into proposed projects, and establish a review and response period when these CR measures do not go through the City’s Uniform Land Use Review Process (ULURP).
Fight to preserve the identity of the neighborhood and public spaces
Coastal resiliency does not need to be a zero-sum game between infrastructure projects and the quality of life in neighborhoods that host them. In fact, we can fight for a future in which our neighborhoods are more climate resilient and more enjoyable to live in, while keeping their culture intact.
Marte will fight for plan designs to preserve views and access to waterfronts that are fully available to the public. This includes minimizing prison-like walls and fences in favor of deployable or movable mitigations, minimizing private companies from claiming newly developed space, and expanding green, public areas. Newly built public parks should also have health and safety amenities as requested by the community — benches, tables, shaded areas with trees, public bathrooms and water fountains, adequate lighting, native plantings, ample space for pedestrians and bikers, exercise equipment and public sports fields — all of which should be accessible for people with disabilities and the elderly.
Marte supports providing meaningful park alternatives to residents during the building of climate resiliency infrastructure along our waterfront including improving the areas linking Pier 36, the riverside walkway, and Pier 42. During the construction of BMCR and ESCR, this will be the only publicly available waterfront areas for much of Lower Manhattan. Currently, Pier 36 provides an amazing view of the East River but the space itself is underutilized and unsightly. With some low-cost improvements such as new benches, planters, shading, and adequate lighting, this public space pier can be transformed into a lively space for exercise and recreation. Similarly, developing the walkway towards the Pier 42 Interim Deck would open up 2,000 linear feet of space for walking, running, and cycling. Marte also supports more friendly and accessible designs for the Pier 42 interim park including lower fences, planters for shade and oxygen, Porta Potties, and more open space instead of fee-paying tennis courts.
Marte supports the building of a resiliency park and stormwater detention system at 250 Water Street in Peck Slip. This project will make the Seaport area resilient during flooding and extreme precipitation events and add more green, public space to the neighborhood.
Marte will also make sure construction plans adhere to City regulations regarding monitoring, regular reporting, open data and external investigation of excessive noise, air quality, and debris, dust, or dirt in the air.
Marte fully supports the temporary relocation of the Lower East Side Ecology Center (LESEC) Compost Center to an interim site and a commitment to returning it to East River Park so that compost services resume once ESCR construction is complete. Coastal resiliency must go hand-in-hand with climate resilient practices like composting and reducing carbon emissions from organic waste. Mayor de Blasio’s actions to scrap The Big U coastal resiliency plan, a years-long collaboration between experts, residents, and local representatives, in favor of the ESCR with little to no community involvement should not be the model for how climate resiliency projects are handled in the future. Marte will fight hard to support communities working to salvage the ESCR project and make sure change orders to the city’s designs are implemented.
Endnotes
(3) https://www1.nyc.gov/site/nycha/about/recovery-resiliency.page
(4) Meeting recordings will posted in the future at https://www1.nyc.gov/site/lmcr/progress/brooklyn-bridge-montgomery-coastal-resilience.page
(7) https://untappedcities.com/2020/06/09/op-ed-give-new-yorkers-back-their-shorelines-by-suraj-patel/