RIOC Southpoint Park Shoreline Restoration Project Tour Answers Questions From Assembly Member Seawright, Borough President Brewer And Residents On Crumbling Seawall, Public Access To Waterfront, Removing Trees, Soil Contamination Cat Sanctuary & More - Watch Video Of The Tour To Find Out What's Going On

This AM walkthrough of the Southpoint Park Project that I was proud to secure joined by Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and resident stakeholders. RIOC commitments include walkthroughs of the project, public site and a dedicated email for neighbors. pic.twitter.com/haLqschMl0

— Rebecca Seawright (@SeawrightForNY) July 17, 2020

Last Saturday, July 17, NY State Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Chief Financial Officer John O'Reilly together with RIOC staff joined with local residents on a tour of the Southpoint Park Restoration Project. According to Ms Seawright, the purpose of the tour was to:

... better understand and address the RI community concerns of the upcoming Southpoint Shoreline project...

As previously reported, some Roosevelt Island community members, led by the Wildlife Freedom Foundation (WFF) President Rossana Ceruzzi, vigorously oppose the Shoreline Restoration project to fix the crumbling seawall and provide greater waterfront access to the public because they claim the project will:

... destroy 325 Trees and decimate the wildlife living in the area....

RIOC answers that the Southpoint Park Shoreline Restoration Project:

... preserves the natural habitat and wildlife that currently exist, while also enhancing the surrounding greenspace paths. The required work involves the removal of toxic soil that has been inundated with overgrown landfills, choked with invasive vegetation, that must be removed before the seawall can be repaired. Roughly 99 small trees (ten inches in diameter) will be removed and replaced with 79 trees. The tree removal is necessary to access the area to be remediated. In addition, 870 shrubs, 645 other indigenous plantings, and approximately 14,500 sq. ft. of new grass that will encourage more wildlife to visit the shoreline. This project must be completed in order to prevent further deterioration of the seawall due to the ever-increasing impacts of climate change....

... Due to community concerns of the project’s potential effects on local flora and fauna, we are pushing the start date back. In the interim, RIOC will provide the community with regular updates on the project through meetings, press releases, its website and social media....

Here's portion of the Southpoint Park Shoreline Restoration Project tour.

Part 1 - Questions raised about need for cutting down trees, soil contamination and moving Cat Sanctuary to a new location.



Part 2 - RIOC shows off new Southpoint Park WFF Cat Sanctuary.



Part 3 - Roosevelt Island resident describes sadness at loss of existing greenery and natural habitat caused by the project and asks RIOC to give the community more natural space.



Part 4 - Wildlife Freedom Foundation President Rossana Ceruzzi describes how she will move cats to new Sanctuary in Southpoint Park



Part 5 - After the tour, Manhattan Borough President Brewer and Assembly Member Seawright tell us what they think of the project.



UPDATE 8:35 PM - According to RIOC:

The Southpoint Park Project is scheduled to commence groundbreaking on Thursday, July 23, 2020

The preservation of Roosevelt Island’s southernmost 14 acres as parkland was first proposed in the General Development Plan (GDP), which charted the development of the Island as a residential community. Historically, the Southpoint Park site was used for disposal of construction and demolition debris resulting from the demolition of the former City Hospital. On-site soils contain heavy metals typical for urban fill. The project area, along both waterfronts, is fenced and has been off-limits to the public to prevent contact with the soils.

After three decades, the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC) invited The Trust for Public Land (TPL) to launch park creation efforts with extensive community outreach in 2005. In response, TPL produced a widely supported Master Plan for a portion of the site, 7.25 acres, which was developed and completed in 2011.

In 2008, RIOC contracted AECOM (Architecture, Engineering, Construction, Operations and Management Firm) to survey the site. AECOM prepared a Phase 1 and Phase 2 Report for the park. Additional sampling was later performed in 2013 by Langan Engineering & Environment Firm for preparation of the Soil Management Plan associated with the waterfront improvements. The approved Soil Management Plan, in compliance with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) standards, outlines the removal of the excess construction debris and the addition of 2-feet of clean fill to provide a physical barrier between the remainder of construction debris to the public.

In April 2017, the Community Plan for Southpoint Park Open Space was prepared for RIOC by Fitzgerald & Halliday, Inc. With the help and feedback from community input, the primary goal of the Stakeholders Plan was to provide a long-range planning and implementation document to guide RIOC on the future development of Southpoint Park Open Space and the Renwick Ruins. The approved plan highlighted accessibility, usability, natural environment features that encouraged wildlife, and access to the shoreline.

In 2018, plans moved forward with the Roosevelt Island Southpoint Park project, prioritizing the necessity to repair the erosion of the east and west seawalls that was critical to ensure the health and safety of the public while visiting Southpoint Park. The proposed plan was reviewed and approved by several federal, state, and local agencies charged with protecting the environment, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI)– Fish and Wildlife Services, the National Marine Fisheries Services (NOAA), and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) and the New York City Small Business Service (SBS). The RIOC Board of Directors unanimously approved the plan earlier this year.