What will be the future of New York?

It is difficult to predict in detail what the New York of the future will be like. Throughout its history, this city has changed several times, sometimes beyond recognition. It's likely that in a few decades, some areas of the Big Apple will look very different. Especially if the most daring and ambitious architectural projects are implemented. AM New York discusses the possible future of New York.

Freshkills Park, Staten Island

Not so long ago, here was located the main garbage dump of New York, which the residents of Staten Island hated with all their hearts all the 54 year of its work. Garbage from all over the metropolis was brought to this island. But In 2007, the sanitary department closed the landfill. Work has begun on converting it into a park area.

It is expected that more than 25 years may pass before the final transformation of the landfill into a friendly park. Upon completion, the Freshkills Staten Island can match in size to the famous Central Park in Manhattan, spread out over more than 2200 acres.

Elywise Hirsch, the administrator of Freshkills Park, promises that the new park will have many kilometers of hiking and cycling paths, a sports field for football and other games, a golf course, as well as an extensive open space for holding open-air concerts and other public events. .

The giant park on the site of the former landfill will also be, according to the managers of the reconstruction project, completely safe for visitors and the environment of Staten Island.

Lowline

Named after the High Line (a park created on the site of an abandoned railroad in Manhattan), Lowline is a project of a unique underground park. A place under the ground in which it is warm, bright and cozy even in the most severe winter blizzard, where the grass and flowers bloom at any time of the year seems to be a decoration of a science fiction film.

However, this is not fantasy, but the reality of the near future, say the project developers, led by architect Dan Barascci. After a few years, they argue, a miracle park may appear underground on the Lower East Side. It will be located under the streets of Délancy and Essex, where the tram depot has long ceased to operate.

The main feature of the park will be "live" sunlight. Special discs located on the surface of the earth, above the park, will be able to collect sunlight, and then “dissipate” it underground, creating a unique visual effect. Real sunlight is better for the eyes than any artificial lighting.

Construction work is expected to begin in 2018.

Queensway

The fate of the old railroad tracks running through Forest Park in Rockaway, Queens will soon be decided. Activists who call themselves Friends of the Queensway want to transform the abandoned railway into a modern, futuristic park similar to the High Line in Manhattan. While there is another option - to restore the abandoned railway in order to run trains on it again.
The rails extend 3,5 miles from Rego Park to Ozone Park through Forest Park. Old railroad tracks are overgrown with grass, shrubs and trees. In some places, they are almost not visible. As for the restoration of the railway, and for the creation of the park will require a lot of labor and material investments.

The last time trains went along this branch of the Rockaway Beach line more than 50 years ago. Vetka was closed due to unprofitability, as in those years cars everywhere ousted rail transport.

Currently, a detailed study of the possibilities associated with the construction of the new park and its design is underway. Most likely, its results will be published by the end of this year.

Blueway Beach on the East River

Scott Stringer, the chief auditor of New York last year, when he served as Manhattan president, promised to find 7 million dollars to set up a beach on the East River, near the Brooklyn Bridge.
The creation of a beach and waterfront green space will be part of a Downtown waterfront redevelopment plan called the Blueway. It will affect the northern tip of the island - from Battery Park to the Manhattan Bridge.
Sun and sand lovers won't have to travel from all over New York City to Coney Island or Far Rockaway in the future. All this will soon appear in the very center of the city - in Downtown Manhattan.

Another important function of the coastal zone is to protect Lower Manhattan from raging hurricanes if a devastating disaster like Sandy were to happen again.

The future recreation area will measure 11 square feet (3350 square meters) when measured at low tide. In addition to the beach, there will be a canoe dock, fishing area and green alleys. All this is in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge and within walking distance of the Financial District.

+ Pool

Another project related to water, beach rest and bathing was called + Swimming.

Architect Dong-Ping Wong created a project of a unique pool, made in the form of a plus sign. This pool can be built in the waters of the East River or Hudson. Special technologies will allow to clean thousands of cubic meters of river water, use it to fill the pool, and then lower it into the river. Width + Basin will be, as planned, 50 meters.

If Wang’s team succeeds in obtaining the necessary permits and approval from City Hall, the construction of the pool can begin as early as 2017.

However, exactly where the innovative pool will be located is still unknown. To date, representatives of several districts of Manhattan have spoken in favor of building a pool on their shore.