Today everyone is talking green.  As New Yorkers look to create a sustainable future in New York City, it will mean moving the desire for green living beyond theory and into practice. Among the Borough President’s projects in this area are the following:

Go Green East Harlem!, a collaborative community-based initiative aimed at breaking the pattern of harmful environmental conditions that have been part of East Harlem’s history for decades, while serving as a model for other environmentally beleaguered neighborhoods. Go Green projects include:

• The East Harlem Asthma Center of Excellence, a $3.4 million project which will open in 2008 in collaboration with the mayor, and be accountable for reducing asthma hospitalizations by 50 percent within 3 years;
• The planting of hundreds of trees uptown to speed the reforestation of East Harlem;
• Opening new Green Markets to make healthy, locally grown food available to East Harlem residents;
• The Go Green East Harlem Cook Book, featuring delicious, healthy recipes gathered from East Harlem’s best chefs, which will be provided free of charge to neighborhood residents; and
• A green building conference with 400 participants in October of 2007 on the practicalities of sustainable new development and retrofitting, as well as green roofs and nontoxic building maintenance practices.

Another environmental initiative of the office is Take Me To The River, a project to create a community-based plan for the Riverside Park area from 137th to 157th Street for which the Borough President secured a $475,000 grant from the State Department of Environmental Protection.

In his first two years in office the Borough President allocated $4,225,000 to parks and playgrounds in Manhattan.

Ongoing Issues of Concern

Green Buildings

Green building is the future of development in Manhattan. A green building is designed and constructed  to be more energy efficient and less polluting. Green construction and renovations can improve and protect the environment, enhance worker productivity, and promote the city’s economic health. However, green building has predominantly occurred in commercial and high-end residential markets, and the recent enactment of Local Law 86 mandates green building only among non-residential, city-funded municipal construction projects.  Residents living in affordable housing have largely been left behind by the green building movement, partly because of the lack of education among industry professionals, myths of inflated costs associated with green building, and a lack of demand from residents. 

Solid Waste Management and the 3R’s

With the closure of the Fresh Kills landfill on Staten Island in 2001, New York City embarked on an interim, truck-based export system for trash that continues today. It costs over $1 billion a year to get residential garbage out of the city. Borough President Stringer will work to ensure that the Mayor’s 20-year Solid Waste Management Plan emphasizes the “three R’s” of waste – reduction, re-use and recycling – and environmentally sound and socially equitable approaches to waste export. Community acceptance of New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) facilities, such as transfer stations and garages, is difficult to win, but equitable siting of sanitation garages in the borough in order to reduce vehicle miles traveled is a worthwhile goal. It is also important to integrate planning for management of the commercial waste stream, as more than 40% of the entire city’s commercial waste is generated here in Manhattan, the bulk of it below 59th Street.  The Borough President has reinstated the Solid Waste Advisory Board (SWAB), a committee of local industry experts who serve as an independent watchdog on the 3R’s in Manhattan.

Parks and Parkland

Manhattan’s 2,686 acres of parkland improve the quality of our air and environment. Parks have been credited with reducing crime and serving as an essential component of public health—providing a refuge from urban life and improving the physical and mental health of our residents.  With 17.8 percent of the borough devoted to parkland, including 204 playgrounds, 371 basketball courts, and countless other facilities, a significant amount of support is needed to keep our parks and community gardens clean, well-maintained, and safe. As the population of Manhattan grows, parkland becomes ever more precious. Manhattan faces challenges in providing and maintaining enough parkland for all its residents, regardless of socioeconomic status. Adequate funding is essential to meet these challenges. Over the past 15 years, City funding for parks has declined by 25 percent, resulting in a 50 percent decline in parks staff.

Waterfront

Manhattan’s waterfront continues to receive serious attention from developers, civic organizations and government officials. From Harlem to the Hudson Yards, new parks are being developed, while other proposals call for commercial and institutional uses. This is a critical moment for Manhattan’s waterfront, and it is an area where Borough President Stringer plays a vital role. 

Although there have been many successes, too many New Yorkers still have limited access to the waterfront. Serious and consistent investments are required to restore the health and vitality of Manhattan’s waterfront and make it fully accessible to the people of New York. These investments must focus on improving access, as well as ongoing maintenance.  Specific projects and areas that are a focus of Borough President  Stringer’s work are: Hudson River Park, Harlem River Park, the East River Waterfront, Harlem Piers and the West Harlem waterfront, Riverside Park North, Randall’s Island, Roosevelt Island, Battery Park, and Governors Island.

The Manhattan Borough President has three appointments to the thirteen-member Board of Directors of The Hudson River Park Trust, a partnership between New York State and City that is charged with the design, construction and operation of the five-mile Hudson River Park, created by the Hudson River Park Act.

The Governors Island Advisory Committee, created at the Borough President’s request and composed of elected officials, community organizations, and civic groups, advises the Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation on plans for the island’s future development.  The current task is choosing an appropriate firm to design the parks and open space network on the island.