Monday, July 13, 2020

Wildlife Freedom Foundation March And Protest Roosevelt Island Shoreline Restoration Project Last Saturday - Learn Why And About Other Roosevelt Island Issues At July 14 Virtual Town Hall Community Forum Hosted By Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright With Acting RIOC President Shelton Haynes

NY State Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright is hosting a Roosevelt Island Virtual Town Hall Community Forum with Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Acting President Shelton Haynes on Tuesday, July 14 at 7 PM


You're invited to watch and participate. Click here for info and to join the Facebook Live event. You can submit questions before the Town Hall at SEAWRIGHTR@NYASSEMBLY.GOV or in the Facebook Live Chat during the Town Hall.

Among the various Roosevelt Island issues to be addressed is the Southpoint Park Seawall and Shoreline Restoration Project which some residents, led by Wildlife Freedom Foundation (WFF) President Rossana Ceruzzi, claim will destroy 325 Trees and decimate the wildlife living in the area.

The Southpoint Park Shoreline project was scheduled to begin today but was temporarily paused by RIOC for the upcoming Town Hall to provide the community with more info.

 Last Saturday, July 11, the WFF organized a demonstration

and march

protesting RIOC's Southpoint Park Seawall and Shoreline restoration at the site of the planned work to begin shortly. Ms Ceruzzi spoke passionately to supporters about need to protect the trees and natural habitat on Roosevelt Island..



But, according to Acting RIOC President Shelton Haynes:
The goal of the Roosevelt Island Southpoint Park project is to repair the erosion of the east and west seawalls and is 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 Departmental of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). The RIOC Board of Directors unanimously approved the plan earlier this year.

Over the course of the project timeline, RIOC has welcomed feedback from the community and will ensure that the Southpoint Park project preserves the natural habit 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.

Once complete, the waterfront will create a safer, more natural environment where wildlife can thrive. The riprap rock will also be more resilient to future storms and more conducive for wildlife to reach the shore from the river.

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. We will also provide a place on the website where the community can provide questions and feedback on the project as well as see updates on the progress of the project. To address the immediate concerns of the community, a virtual townhall with Assembly Member Seawright has been scheduled for Tuesday, July 14, 2020 (click HERE for info). We look forward to working with Assembly Member Seawright and our other stakeholders on bringing this critically needed project to completion.

To view the Southpoint Park Shoreline Restoration Project timeline and for future project updates, go to: rioc.ny.gov/513

Please see the attached photos detailing the current conditions of our shoreline, as well as a rendering of the completed project.

You can view the supporting RIOC documents on the Southpoint Park seawall projects here.

Assembly Member Seawright attended Saturday's protest. I asked her and Ms Ceruzzi about RIOC's claim that 99 trees will be removed because they are on contaminated soil. Watch their reply.


Here's full statement from Ms Seawright.



Lou Puliafito, a Republican candidate challenging Ms Seawright in the 76 Assembly District election this November was supporting the WFF protest too.

The charge that there has been no community input into the Southpoint seawall project is not true for anybody who has been paying attention to the issue. RIOC has held several public meeting on the subject and posted documents on their web site as well as RI media reporting here.



During the March 5 RIOC Board meeting Public Session, the RIOC Directors heard objections from community members opposed to the Shoreline Plan who say it will destroy the native wildlife and plant habitat.



Here's presentation of the plan by Langan Engineering representatives and the RIOC Board discussion of the issue.



As previously reported, according to RIOC Public Information Officer Terrence McCauley:
... RIOC asked Langan Engineering to make a presentation at the RIOC Board Meeting on March 5, 2020 in response to community concerns about the Southpoint Park Revetment Project. After much discussion regarding existing green space and the public’s desire for a dedicated space where wildlife can thrive, it was agreed that slight modification to the existing permitted design could further enhance the green space planned. The basic plan proposed for both shores remains the same as presented. However, on the eastern shoreline one of the east/west pedestrian paths will be removed and a soft barrier to limit human to the enlarged interior greenspace will be provided....
Here's the revised design with dedicated wildlife space.


as well as Tree survey

and soil management plan. According to Page 3 of the January 8 2020 Southpoint Park Soil Management Plan prepared by Langan Engineering:
... The Site consists of two waterfront strips, each about 25ft to 50ft in width, along the Park’s east and west shorelines. Due to both the hazardous conditions of dilapidated stone seawalls and the presence of soil contaminants, these two waterfront strips are currently fenced and are accessible by key access only via locked gates....

... Soil sampling completed during this Phase II revealed that the Site is underlain by historic fill material with concentrations of the metals; lead, mercury, and barium above their corresponding New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Restricted Use - Residential Soil Cleanup Objectives (SCOs) and Protection of Groundwater in one or more samples....
Here's the full Soil Management report.



Watch the Roosevelt Island Virtual Town Hall Community Forum tomorrow with Assembly Member Seawright and Acting RIOC President Shelton Haynes on Facebook.

Click here for info and to join the Facebook Live event. You can submit questions at SEAWRIGHTR@NYASSEMBLY.GOV or in the Facebook Live Chat.

UPDATE 7/19 - Watch video of the Virtual Town Hall.

By ROOSEVELT ISLANDER at 8:27:00 PM

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