Get Thee To the Water

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Brooklyn Bridge Beach Park. It isn’t exactly Coney Island.
You probably couldn’t spread more that a dozen or two blankets and that’d be at low tide, because at high tide, it’s mostly under water. But Brooklyn Bridge Beach Park officially opened on July 14 for one day during the Waterfront Alliance’s 11th annual City of Water Day.

 

The Waterfront Alliance’s mission is to get people to, on, and in the water. And that’s what happened on City of Water Day, especially at Piers 16 and 17 in the Seaport District, where the festival’s hub was presented by The Howard Hughes Corporation (HHC).
“We are pleased to have the Seaport District play such an integral part in City of Water Day and look forward to seeing our waterfronts come to life in celebration of this special Waterfront Alliance event,” said Saul Scherl, president of HHC’s New York Tri-State Region.
“The Seaport Museum is thrilled to partner with Waterfront Alliance on City of Water Day; this water-focused event brings attention to New York’s origins as a port city and focuses efforts on the future of our metropolis,” said Jonathan Boulware, president and CEO of the South Street Seaport Museum.

 

Roland Lewis gets an assist with the ceremonial cutting of the ribbon aboard the magnificently restored Wavertree. Left to right, Saul Scherl, Roland Lewis, and Jonathan Boulware, with Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Council Member Margaret Chin and U.S. Coast Guard Commander of the Port Capt. Jason Tama.

One highlight of the day was the Con Edison Cardboard Kayak Race which involved teams building kayaks out of cardboard and tape and then racing them in heats at Brooklyn Bridge Beach.

This year, competing teams came from the Coast Guard, Stuyvesant High School, several engineering firms, recreational boating clubs, and family groups.

“We at the Waterfront Alliance are grateful to the City of New York and the New York City Economic Development Corporation for allowing access to Brooklyn Bridge Beach on City of Water Day,” said Waterfront Alliance president and CEO Roland Lewis. “Civic groups in Lower Manhattan have worked for years to unlock this singular stretch of waterfront, and this is a great first step. I’m proud that the Waterfront Alliance brought the parties together and made it happen, and prouder still that together we are working hard all around our urban archipelago to make sure everyone has a safe way to get to the water. As we celebrate our waterways and waterfronts on July 14, we should remember that many waterfront districts in the region have minimal or zero waterfront access. We’ve got our work cut out for us.”

 

The Con Edison Cardboard Kayak Race championship heat, under the Brooklyn Bridge on July 14.
The first place team, from the engineering firm HNTB, is at far left, having paddled out and around the orange buoy while the other boats in the championship heat were still foundering in the breakers.

 

Waterfront Alliance’s Roland Lewis with Catherine McVay Hughes, long time Downtown resident and former chair of Community Board 1 and Yuh-Line Niou, New York State Assembly Member.

 

 

South Street Seaport Museum president and CEO Jonathan Boulware with City Council member Margaret Chin and his son Elijah.