England's Daily Mail has a great article on Roosevelt Island history starting from the the Minnehanock Native Americans to Blackwells Island, Welfare Island and to the present day with some fantastic historical pictures from days gone by.
Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Vice President of Operations Fernando Martinez (who resigned effective December 21) updated the November 29 meeting of the RIOC Board Operations Committee on damage suffered by Roosevelt Island from Hurricane Sandy.
Mr. Fernandez repeated his earlier report to the Operations Committee that Lighthouse Park was severely damaged with the pedestrian bridges washed away and light poles damaged requiring the park to be closed for an indefinite period of time.
Image of Closed Lighthouse Park Entrance From Volker Hage
Mr. Martinez added that there was additional damage to the Cultural Center that had some of its windows blown out and significant soil erosion damage to Southpoint Park seawall area. RIOC Director Michael Shinozaki confirmed the soil damage noting that he noticed during a walk of the area that the ground was collapsing in portions of Southpoint Park and urged that warning signs be placed in the area.
Mr. Martinez also recommended that the Feral Cat Shelter in Southpoint Park, which is located near the area of the unstable ground, be moved.
What does Cornell NYC Tech think about potential damage to Roosevelt Island from future Hurricanes? According to the Cornell Daily Sun:
... In order to ensure that the tech campus will withstand the damage caused by any future storms, officials said architects are taking as many precautions as possible in constructing the campus.
To prevent damage from hurricanes and other weather-related events, the windows, panels, roofing and other elements that surround buildings will “meet or exceed the latest codes,” David Keating, a spokesperson for CornellNYC Tech, said.
The possibility of flooding and rising sea levels as a result of climate change are also being taken into consideration, according to Keating.
“For the Roosevelt Island site, our plans have always included provisions to raise the current level of the site and locate sensitive systems high above floodplain levels,” he said.
Central walkways and the ground floor of all buildings will be raised to an elevation of 19 to 21 feet in accordance with various regulations and guidelines, he said.
Officials are still considering how to implement other elements — including “emergency warning systems, security, communications, lighting and other campus systems” — to safeguard the Roosevelt Island campus against natural disasters, Keating said....
... construction plans have not changed drastically in the wake of Hurricane Sandy because Cornell had already taken a fairly conservative approach, with all entrances planned for 19 feet above sea level.
“We believe global warming is real. It’s going to get worse and worse,” he said. The university may now require entrances to be slightly higher, he said....
... New RIRA President Ellen Polivy said that suggestions have been made to Cornell NYC Tech (and Cornell is considering) that the design of their new campus include plans to "Shelter In Place" for the Roosevelt Island community in the event it becomes necessary in a future emergency....
Crains NY Business also reports that Cornell is considering Ms. Polivy's suggestion:
... The remaining question is whether the university can take on island residents in a crisis—a population that would dwarf the 2,500 students and 300 faculty members who will eventually inhabit the two-million square foot campus.
"One thing that Sandy has done for us is that it put these sorts of issues in the forefront," Mr. Winters said.
Mr. Winters is the Cornell NYC Tech Director of Capital Projects and Planning.
1637 - Dutch Governor Wouter Van Twiller buys Minnahannock from two Chiefs of the Canarsie tribe. Minnahannock means It's Nice to Be Here or Long Island, the latter readily explained by the dimensions: 107 acres (later expanded to 147), 2 miles long, 800 feet wide at its broadest. It runs North-South, opposite what will become 40 Manhattan blocks from 46th to 86th Streets. The Dutch raise hogs on the island, so it becomes known as Varcken (Hog) Island.
1639 - A succession of Dutch farmers works the Island under land grants from the Amsterdam Chamber of the West India Company.
1642 - Farmer Jan Claessen Alteras makes a claim for improvements costing 300 guilders: a house, goat-pen, garden. Over the years, he is succeeded by Francois Fyn, Jonas Bronck, and Laurens Duyts.
1652 - Governor Stuyvesant declares the Indian sale to Van Twiller void. The Island is granted to Captain Francis Fyn. The Island is seen as "particularly useful for the [West India] Company in the imminent or any future differences with the English, being adapted for fortifications to be built thereon."
1658 - Laurens Duyts defaults on his lease for the Island and, in a separate scrape with the authorities, is banished from the province "for selling his wife into immoral slavery and for gross immoralities committed by himself."
1666 - After Dutch capitulation to the British, Captain John Manning acquires the island and it becomes known as Manning's Island.
1667 - Manning is appointed, on July 24, Sheriff of New York. In the absence of Governor Lovelace, he commands Fort James.
1671 - Manning moves to the island.
1673 - While in command of Fort James, on August 9, Manning surrenders the City of New York to the Dutch.
1675 - Manning is court-martialied, accused of treachery and cowardice. He is publicly disgraced, his sword borken in a City Hall ceremony, and he retires to his Island. The Rev. Charles Wooley later notes in his journal that Captain Manning is condemned to exile "to a small island from his name called Manning's Island, where I have been several times with the said Captain whose entertainment was commonly a Bowl of Rum-Punch."
1676 - Manning's step-daughter, Mary Manningham, marries Robert Blackwell. Manning appears to have lived until at least 1685. The will of Matthew Taylor of New York, dated February 20, 1687-8, there is mention of "a mortgage of John Manning, his Island."
1686 - Manning's son-in-law, Robert Blackwell, becomes owner of the Island and gives it his name.
Roosevelt Island is a mixed income, racially diverse waterfront community situated in the East River of New York City between Manhattan and Queens and is jurisdictionally part of Manhattan. The Roosevelt Island Tramway, which connects Roosevelt Island to the rest of Manhattan, has become the iconic symbol of Roosevelt Island to its residents.
The Purpose of this Blog is to provide accurate and timely information about Roosevelt Island as well as a forum for residents to express opinions and engage in a dialogue to improve our community.
