Stretching alongside the Hudson River from 59th to 72nd Street, Riverside Park South is getting a makeover. Here, authorities are planning to install bicycle paths, picnic benches and tables, basketball courts, bathrooms and playing fields.
Looking North (Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)
The area has been subject to a recent development boom, with a full-floor penthouse on One Riverside Park having recently been sold for $20,063,525. This isn’t the only case though. According to NYC Blog Estate, “the average price per square foot of a Riverside Boulevard condominium increased 10 percent year-over-year to $1,552 in the fourth quarter of 2011, compared to a 4 percent gain to $1,417 in Manhattan as a whole.”
One Riverside Park (Courtesy One Riverside Park )
Sales in the vicinity are also outpacing that of Manhattan, rising 23 percent between 2010 and 2011 compared to Manhattan’s measly 6 percent inflation. One source for the growth in the area’s property market could be the development is likely to be the project going on at Riverside Park South.
Bike path with a view (Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)
(Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)
Old railcar loaders on view (Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)
Seating with the old pier in the background (Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)
(Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)
On 73rd Street, a newly installed stairway takes pedestrians southward toward open green spaces, intended for sport and leisure, and a pier that houses a cafe. Extending 750 feet out, the pier becomes the parks most identifiable feature, able to offer views up and down the Hudson.
The 750ft long pier (Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)
The pier viewed at pedestrian level (Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)
All in all, the space is tied together through the arrangement of circulatory devices such as esplanades, marshland, boardwalks and planting. These pedestrian-friendly havens, neatly nestled away from the chaos of Manhattan, make for a ideal space to relax and escape the adjacent city.
(Courtesy Thomas Balsley Associates)