Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Watch Fascinating Video Of RIHS Lecture About Redevelopment Of Roosevelt Island From Blackwell's & Welfare Island To Visionary Phillip Johnson/John Burgee 1969 Master Plan To Present Day Deviations

Last Tuesday, March 19, the Roosevelt Island Historical Society (RIHS) hosted a presentation by Hunter College Urban Policy and Planning graduate student Dylan Brown. He is currently working on a research project with RIHS President Judy Berdy exploring the history of Roosevelt Island's development  from its beginning as Blackwell's Island to Welfare Island to the 1969 Roosevelt Island Master Plan by architects Phillip Johnson/John Burgee and continuing to the present day. Approximately 30 residents attended his very interesting and informative lecture at the Roosevelt Island NYPL branch.

RIHS President Judy Berdy introduced Dylan and reported he:

... has been working with us the last few weeks going through our treasure chest and it is a treasure chest. We have things from the from the 60s the welfare Island days the early development days...

According to Mr Brown:

... Last semester I started a research project on Roosevelt Island and that is how I met Judy. That research project has still not finished ... because it is so detailed and in depth. I really felt like I could not wrap myself around how much history has happened on Rosevelt Island ... to focus on just one aspect is almost impossible. What I'm going to try to do to you guys today is explain a very long history about probably one of the most interesting places in New York City...

My research prompt for this was: How did Roosevelt Island deviate from its master plan in 1969 and why?

... I'm a nerd. I like urban planning. I knew about Rosevelt Island beforehand and I read the Master Plan. I thought it was fascinating but I never really dove into it until this project. I noticed that there was a lot of things that either happened or didn't happen or were altered so basically the presentation we're going to go through will be in four sections. 

The first section is going to be history. We're going to be looking at the history of Roosevelt Island pre-development and post-development.

Then we're going to be looking at the Island That Nobody Knows. That's the 1969 plan devised for the Island.

Then we're going to be looking at building Northtown which is where you're sitting in right now... 

... Finally we're going to look at the deviations and how, what you experienced of Roosevelt Island from the 1969 plan that was laid out.

Here's video of Dylan Brown's Redeveloping Roosevelt Island lecture,

his slide presentation

and the Phillip Johnson/John Burgee Roosevelt Island Master Plan.

RIHS President Judy Berdy adds:

Over the last 40 years we have collected all sorts of island artifacts Luckily we have storage unit in the Octagon as well as our office. We have hundreds of photos and paper documents that can be used for research. Here a some of our unique collection...

And:

TREASURES REDISCOVERED 

This is an original poster that publicized the exhibit “Welfare Island: An Interim Report” which was presented at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for two weeks October 6 through October 19, 1970 

Did you know that there was a scale model of the future island exhibited at the Met in 1970? This is just one historical item that is stored in our office/archive in the Octagon 

WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT TO FUND OUR ARCHIVAL WORK TO MAKE OUR COLLECTIONS MORE AVAILABLE AND EASY TO USE. PLEASE USE OUR DONATION LINK BELOW TO MAKE A DONATION FOR OUR ARCHIVES AND AN EXHIBIT OF OUR COLLECTION IN UPCOMING MONTHS. ALL DONATIONS ARE TAX DEDUCTABLE AND WILL BE ACKNOWLEDGED.

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