You're Invited To Join Roosevelt Island Southpoint Park Shoreline Project Walking Tour Friday Morning July 17 - Opponents Claim Project Destroys Trees And Natural Habitat, Supporters Say Project Fixes Crumbling Seawall, Preserves Habitat And Enhances Surrounding Green Space Paths, You Decide

To better understand and address the RI community concerns of the upcoming Southpoint Shoreline project, I am happy to announce that I secured public walking tours of the project. The tours will be informational and informative. Secure your spot now! pic.twitter.com/Ow3bEx0x9e

— Rebecca Seawright (@SeawrightForNY) July 16, 2020

As previously reported, during the current temporary pause before construction begins on the Southpoint Park Shoreline Restoration Project, the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC)  invites you to a walking tour of the area tomorrow morning.

According to RIOC:

You are invited to join us for a public walkthrough of the Southpoint Park Shoreline Restoration Project!

Walk throughs are scheduled for tomorrow, Friday, July 17th.

The time slots available are:

10:00 AM  -10:15 AM - 10:30 AM - 10:45 AM - 11:00 AM - 11:15 AM - 11:30 AM - 11:45 AM

To register contact Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright’s office at seawrightr@nyassembly.gov or call (212) 288-4607.

Please be advised that tour groups will be limited to a maximum of 10 people.

To view the project timeline and see future updates, go to the project page HERE.

For questions about the project, email SPPprojectinfo@rioc.ny.gov

The temporary pause in construction of the project is to allow RIOC additional time to answer claims from community members, led by the Wildlife Freedom Foundation, that the project will destroy trees and decimate wildlife.

pic.twitter.com/zueJXtEt7U

— Wildlife Freedom Foundation (@wffny) July 11, 2020

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 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.

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....

Here's video of the Town Hall



and renderings from RIOC

of the Southpoint Park

Shoreline Restoration Project.

Click here for more info and background on the issue.