EDC Strikes Easement Deal For Randall's Island Connector/South Bronx Greenway Project

Existing Randall's Island connector path. The pedestrian and bicycle span will link the South Bronx to the Island's parks and ballfields. The City needed an easement in order to build a path from the bridge to E. 132nd St. on the Bronx side. An agreement was reached last month with Harlem River Yard Ventures according to New York City Economic Development Corp. The land between the bridge and the South Bronx is part of a sprawling 96-acre rail yard owned by the State Department of Transportation but controlled by the private Harlem River Yards Ventures company under a 99 year lease it secured in 1991.

(Photo: New York City Economic Development)

Rendering of the Randall's Island Connector and pedestrian bridge that links the South Bronx and Randall's Island. (Image: New York City Economic Development Corp.)

Bronx/Randall's Island

By Geoffrey Croft

Low Tide - The Bronx Kill. The Randall's Island Connector bridge, which links the South Bronx and Randall's Island was built last year but has yet to open. The project was orginally supposed to be completed in 2010. (Photos: Geoffrey Croft/NYC Park Advocates) Click on image to enlarge

The quarter-mile Randall's Island Connector is a part of the 1.5 mile South Bronx Greenway, an initiative meant to increase waterfront access in the borough. The Connector will link to a greenway network that stretches from Randall's Island to Astoria, Queens and East Harlem.

The delays isn't the only source of contention on the project. For years South Bronx residents and environmental groups have been pushing for Con Edison to remove its deteriorating concrete conduit (above) located under the bridge. The company has utility cables buried in the structure that spans across the Bronx Kill that blocks human-powered craft including kayaks, canoes and rowing vessels from navigating the waterway.

"A navigable passage through the Bronx Kill is essential for the development of safe recreational boating in New York harbor and ongoing paddling and rowing programs, as well as the NYC Parks Water Trail," a April 30, 2008 letter sent to Mayor Bloomberg and EDC president Seth Pinsky stated.

The eleven signatories on the letter included representatives from numerous boating, park, and environmental organizations.

Last month a Con Edison spokesperson told A Walk In The Park that the Fire Department recently removed its electrical equipment which will pave the way for the structure's removal.

Con Edison's deteriorating concrete conduit is now located under the newly built Randall's Island Connector bridge. In June 2011, Con Edison finally agreed to remove the concrete-encased cables which blocks kayaks and canoes from navigating the Bronx Kill waterway.

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Friends of Brook Park - April 30, 2008

Con Ed Finally Agrees To Move Cable Barrier Freeing Up Bronx Kill Waterway

Con Edison has finally agreed to remove concrete-encased cables blocking kayaks and canoes navigating Bronx Kill waterway. (Photo: © Geoffrey Croft of NYC Park Advocates

Bronx

The Bronx Kill, a waterway long closed to kayaks and canoes, could become navigable by the end of the year, buoying the spirits of urban paddlers, according to the New York Daily News.

Con Edison cables currently block even small boats from using the narrow strait between the South Bronx and Randalls Island.

But under rising pressure from community groups and local officials, the utility has agreed to remove the cables and open the channel, which connects the East River and the Harlem River.

"Four years of tireless advocacy have paid off," said Harry Bubbins of Friends of Brook Park, calling the Bronx Kill a "tranquil and beautiful waterway."

The concrete-encased Con Ed cables span the strait near the RFK-Triborough Bridge. Only during low tide can canoes and kayaks squeeze under the cables, and then for no more than an hour, said Bubbins.

"They limit recreation and education by prohibiting the safe and easy passage of canoes and kayaks," he said.

But Con Ed is working with the city's Economic Development Corp. to remove the cables.

It recently built a trestle between the South Bronx and Randalls Island that will hold new cables and support a pedestrian and bicycle pathway, helping Bronx residents access Randalls Island.

Con Ed wouldn't set a time line for removing old cables, but Bubbins expects them to be gone within a year.

"We will continue to coordinate with Con Ed on the removal of the old conduit structure," said EDC spokesman Kyle Sklerov, calling the pathway a "key link in the city's greenway system."

Construction on the pathway is slated to begin next year.

Kayaks and canoes can already float from the East River to the Harlem River using the Hell Gate strait south of Randalls Island. But the route is less sheltered than the Bronx Kill and the water there is more turbulent.

Rob Buchanan, co-founder of the NYC Water Trail Association, called the planned Bronx Kill opening a "significant victory" andan outgrowth of the NYC Water Trail, a 2007 project that mapped local canoe and kayak launches and routes.

"The Bronx Kill is a really unique urban waterway that's very protected and kind of swirls through a bucolic landscape of green," said Buchanan. "It connects the Harlem River and the East River in a practical way."

He said the Water Trail Association hopes locals who learn to boat as kids will protect the city's waterways when they grow up.

Friends of Brook Park, in Mott Haven, leads kids on paddle tours to promote exercise and awareness of the environment.

Read More:

Urban Kayakers gain victory with Con Ed agreeing to move cable barricade at Bronx Kill by year's end

New York Daily News - June 21, 2011 - By Daniel Beekman