Local pols put heads together on Pier 40
BY LINCOLN ANDERSON
Local politicians are taking another
swing at Pier 40, the Lower
West Side’s youth baseball and
soccer mecca. The effort’s clear goal
is to change the park’s founding legislation
— very possibly to allow commercial
offi ce use on the sprawling W.
Houston St. pier.
What is being described as an “informal,
staff-level working group” has
been meeting since the start of this
year. There have reportedly been about
three meetings so far. These have involved
staff members of local pols,
including City Council Speaker Corey
Johnson, Assemblymember Deborah
Glick, Congressmember Jerry Nadler,
state Senators Brad Hoylman and Brian
Kavanagh and Manhattan Borough
President Gale Brewer.
Pier 40, covering 14.5 acres, is currently
one of two remaining so-called
“commercial nodes” in Hudson River
Park that can be used to generate additional
revenue for the 4.5-mile-long
park. However, the Hudson River Park
Act of 1998 specifi cally does not allow
commercial offi ce use at Pier 40.
A staffer involved in the meetings,
who requested anonymity, said the
hope is for the legislative changes to be
made this session. The Assembly and
state Senate reconvened last month and
the session extends through June.
Another objective, the staffer said,
is to “get an R.F.P. going,” meaning a
request for proposals from interested
private parties to redevelop the pier.
“It’s a renewed effort to fi nd consensus
The Diamonds were shining at last summer’s Greenwich Village Little
League Opening Day on Pier 40. The huge W. Houston St. pier is considered
“Downtown’s Central Park” by local families and youth leagues.
on Pier 40,” he said.
Previous efforts to redevelop the pier
have sunk due to a mix of economic
factors and concern over potential impact
on the community and park.
The pier’s main revenue generator is
long-term car parking, which, in fact,
also provides a signifi cant portion of
the whole park’s operating budget.
The Hudson River Park Trust’s leadership
has indicated commercial offi ce
use is now something they think would
work well, relatively speaking, on the
pier, in terms of fi nancial viability.
In 2017, Community Board 2 created
a Future of Pier 40 Working Group.
The source said the current effort will
use that effort “as a guide.”
Topics up for discussion include the
lease length for the pier and “programming
scenarios,” plus whether Pier 40
should be redeveloped with “part offi ce
space or all offi ce space,” the staffer
added. The staff member assured the
working group’s ideas will be presented
to C.B. 2, which the working group has
already met with once.
In her monthly newsletter to Community
Board 2, Assemblymember Glick
said, “Because Pier 40 is the largest
open space in Hudson River Park and
the location of ball fi elds that are essential
to the many youth and adult sports
leagues in Manhattan, and Downtown
families in particular — a solution for
all stakeholders must be found.”
She said the legislators whose districts
include Pier 40 “have committed
to meeting regularly...and participating
in a transparent, community-driven
public process, in order to discuss a
common-sense approach for the redevelopment
of Pier 40 and any potential
changes to the...Act.”
Hoylman said, “We want to take a
hard look at the Act and see if we have
to make any changes.” The goal, he
said, is “to keep the ball fi elds and create
a revenue stream that’s not entirely
based on parking.”
Madelyn Wils, the Trust’s president,
said the Trust still thinks offi ce use is
best for the pier’s commercial component,
and that a longer lease is needed
to attract developers.
“We’re going to work with the elected
offi cials,” Wils assured.
She said an R.F.P. can only happen if
the legislation is modifi ed.
“We want to see where we are in
June,” she said.
On Tues., Feb. 26, the revived C.B.
2 Pier 40 Working Group held its fi rst
meeting. Noreen Doyle, a Trust senior
V.P., reported the Trust favors a full
tear-down of Pier 40’s pier shed rather
than “band-aid” fi xes. The Hudson River
Park Trust Advisory Council meets
Mon., March 11, at Village Community
School, 272 W. 10th St., at 6:30 p.m.,
and Pier 40 will be on the agenda. C.B.
2 reportedly hopes to have a new resolution
on Pier 40 done by April.
Drugs rampant in Wash. Sq., cops are told
BY GABE HERMAN
Drugs in Washington Square
Park was a main issue discussed
at the Feb. 20 Build the
Block meeting with the Sixth Precinct
and local Village residents. Police discussed
their ongoing efforts to address
the problem, and residents said the
prevalence of drugs is worse than it’s
been in many years.
Police Offi cer Brian Garcia told
the meeting, held at Judson Memorial
Church, that the Sixth Precinct and
Narcotics offi cers had made more than
40 arrests in the park since the year’s
start. He acknowledged that was a high
number and did not include summonses
that were also issued.
“That shows that all the cops in the
Sixth and at Narcotics are doing the
best they can to be around the area, to
be proactive to arrest people inside the
park,” Garcia said.
Several residents requested more
police presence on the west side of the
park in the early morning hours, when
they said people do all kinds of drugs
in broad daylight, plus urinate, defecate
and even openly count out pills.
“It’s very unsightly and noticeable,
especially in the winter when the park
is less crowded,” said one man.
“We are in a critical situation right
now,” another local said, adding it reminded
him of the crack epidemic in
the 1980s.
Another resident said the police presence
seems to be off and on.
“It’s never continuous,” he said.
“It’s a battle,” Garcia said of the ongoing
efforts.
The resident also noted that a police
van was set up on Waverly Place at the
park’s northwest corner about a year
and a half ago, which he said helped
reduce the drug presence.
“The N.Y.P.D. said it didn’t work, but
it did work,” he said.
Others added that there used to be a
patrol of bicycle cops in the park. Some
asked about bringing back light towers.
But Sergeant Daniel Houlahan said
the portable diesel-run lights were not
easy to get and also drew complaints,
though he supported using them.
“The lights are fi ne — if you have
patrol as well,” said one resident. “But
if you don’t, the drug dealers are like,
‘Oh good, it’s a light, let me count my
money.’”
Police conceded that manpower is an
issue. On a good day, there are two offi -
cers on foot patrol and another two in a
squad car, but often it’s just two police
in a car, they said. Houlahan explained
there wasn’t a decrease in manpower,
but rather a shift, and said he would
stress to other supervisors the need for
more manpower for the park.
Another issue raised was that when
an arrest is made, it takes that offi cer
off the street, to bring the person in
to the stationhouse and fi ll out paperwork.
Houlahan added, regarding drug
arrests, whether for buying or selling,
“They’re out the next day, so please
don’t forget that point.”
A woman said years ago a man was
arrested more than 100 times in the
park, and it took the Greenwich Village
Block Associations writing a letter
to offi cials for the man to see any jail
time.
“We have to change the judicial,” she
said. “We have to change the judges because
they’re the ones letting everyone
out.”
A woman who has lived near the
park for more than 30 years recently
told The Villager she noticed drug and
safety concerns starting to get worse a
couple of years ago.
She acknowledged the park’s long
history of drug dealing. But she said she
would like to be able to walk through
the park’s west side without being heckled,
or be able to sit at an open table in
peace. Instead, she now just completely
avoids the park’s western side because
of the shady characters.
“I recognize that they’re always going
to be there,” she said. “My thing is,
can I just feel safe? Let’s all go about
our business.”
6 February 28, 2019 TVG Schneps Media