L-R Levin, Pinsky, CB1 District Manager Gerry Esposito, Bloomberg, CB 1 Chair Chris Olechowski, White, Walker and Markowitz Jeff Mann

Ribbon Cut at Transmitter Park

Better late than never is quickly becoming the motto for Greenpoint’s newest open space, Transmitter Park. Seven years after the city promised to convert the Greenpoint/Williamsburg waterfront to public open space as part of the 2005 rezoning, residents spent nearly the entire summer staring at the seemingly completed park through a locked gate at the end of Greenpoint Avenue. On Saturday, August 25th, Transmitter finally opened, just in time for fall. Two weeks later, on Monday, September 10th, Mayor Bloomberg cut the ribbon to make it official.

Assemblyman Joe Lentol, Councilmember Steve Levin, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, New York City Parks Commissioner Veronica White, Brooklyn Parks Commissioner Kevin Jeffrey, New York City Economic Development Corporation President Seth Pinsky and Laura Walker, president and CEO of New York Public Radio, joined the Mayor at the low key event officially opening the 1.6 acre park at the former site of the WNYC radio transmission towers. Among its features are a pedestrian bridge built across an excavated ferry slip (now restored as a wetland accessible to visitors) as well as a spectacular view of the New York City skyline, with the Empire State Building its centerpiece. The center of the park includes a large, open lawn with a separate children’s play. A newly constructed recreational pier at the end of Kent Street is expected to open by the end of the year.

The cost for developing the 1.6 acre site was $12 million. There is no timetable for amenities such as comfort stations, for which funding is not yet available.

Lentol commended the appearance of the park saying he “was astounded by the landscaping job done by the Parks Department.” He was far less positive about the City’s failure to open up the majority of the approximately 30 acre Greenpoint/Williamsburg waterfront to the public. “I love it,” he said, “but we need more parks. We need the City to live up to the commitment they made to this neighborhood.”

The September 10th event doubled as a coming out party for White who replaced Adrian Benepe at the post. “[Transmitter Park] is a terrific addition to the city as a whole and the latest example of our commitment to bring stunning green spaces and recreation to New Yorkers, visitors to our city, and the North Brooklyn community,” she said in her first public appearance.

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