Volunteers Make Waves New York’s waterfront parkland, always a seasonal favorite, enjoys particular attention this summer as political and civic interests converge. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Commissioner Adrian Benepe have made “reconnecting people with the waterfront” one of their top priorities for parks in the coming year. With renovations completed at Midland Beach Pier in Staten Island, a ribbon cutting in Brooklyn Bridge Park, the opening of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway, and 13 acres of NYC wetlands restored in the last two years, a commitment to waterfront parkland is taking visible shape on a citywide level. At the same time, in neighborhoods across the five boroughs, issues of waterfront access, water quality, and wetland education are rising to the top of community agendas. In the Bronx, a coalition of local organizations is directing attention and resources to the Harlem River and its points of access. March 18 marked the first meeting of the Harlem River Stakeholders, a group of organizations with a commitment to the waterway. More than 100 people gathered at Manhattan College to discuss uses of the riverfront. Borough President Adolfo Carrion outlined his plans for the Bronx waterfront and expressed interest in working with the assembled group. Bronx Parks Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski was also on hand to praise the work of the group and encourage them to move forward. Hosting that day were the Bronx Council for Environmental Quality (BCEQ), Empire State Rowing Association, Manhattan College, New York Restoration Project, Partnerships for Parks, and Riverkeeper. Dart Westphal of BCEQ described one vision of the waterway as the thread linking a series of parks from Van Cortlandt to Yankee Stadium, with the High Bridge re-opened and serving as a focal point. Mr. Westphal noted that the Harlem River is narrow enough for New Yorkers to walk across the High Bridge and back in an evening stroll. The process set in motion by the Harlem River Stakeholders promises to make another urban river accessible and enjoyable for New Yorkers. Last December, the Salt Marsh Alliance in Brooklyn adopted Four Sparrow Marsh just a few miles from their home base in Marine Park. Fresh from an $800,000 restoration, the marsh was full of promise, but remained an illegal dumping ground. On May 15, as part of It’s My Park! Day, Sutton Smith, President of the Alliance, and a team of volunteers hauled away blocks of concrete, an abandoned boat, and mounds of trash. In June, they planted up the area with native species. Robbin Bergfors, Natural Resources Group Project Manager, explains that even after a marsh is environmentally restored, it requires stewardship. “By nature these sites are supposed be self-sustaining, but there are management needs. We need to keep them clean and make sure people aren’t illegally dumping. We need a voice at community board meetings on behalf of the marshes.” Happily, the Salt Marsh Alliance has taken on that very role. Fifteen years ago, what is now Staten Island’s Seaside Nature Park wasn’t even parkland. By this May it was able to host education programs for the first time. Turnaround Friends, a nonprofit founded by Anthony and Shirlee Marraccini, invited three classes of local elementary school students to visit the park and learn about egrets, crabs, and spartina grasses from an Urban Park Ranger. “It was one of those things where you don’t know what the impact will be, but somehow, deep in your heart, you think ‘I’m going to impact this child,’” recalls Mrs. Marraccini. “It was probably one of my most rewarding experiences in life.” When the Marraccinis moved to Great Kills, they started to clean up the derelict waterfront outside their windows and soon formed an association of neighbors. After five acres were designated as parkland, they applied for 501(c)(3) status and began fundraising. “We saved 20 of 35 acres,” marvels Mr. Marraccini. “Other people can do this too. They can form a nonprofit and attack a problem with the support of the community board and elected officials, a good board of directors, good volunteers, and many others. The point in all of this is not ‘look at what we’ve done’, but ‘look at what can be done.’” PARTNERSHIPS ON THE WATERFRONT Partnerships is at the water’s edge at three of our four new Catalyst Project sites: the High Bridge and Highbridge Parks in Manhattan and the Bronx, Red Hook parks in Brooklyn, and a string of seven parks in Long Island City and Astoria, Queens. Mayor Bloomberg along with Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe and City Parks Foundation Executive Director David Rivel launched the new projects in October 2003. The Catalyst Program brings a concentrated focus to select neighborhoods in order to expand and diversify long-term stewardship and the resources devoted to local parkland, facilities, and open spaces. Visit for project descriptions. Partnerships honored The Cornucopia Society at a Partnerships Award Luncheon on March 18. The Society, based in Southeast Queens, is energizing an intergenerational group of senior citizens and teenage scouts to clean and care for waterways in three of their neighborhood parks. Teams of volunteers have cleaned up in Brookville and Idlewild Parks and are now advocating for the rehabilitation of the stagnant wetlands in Twin Ponds Park. You can cool off in the water until September 6 at beaches and pools in every borough, where lifeguards will be on duty seven days a week. For swim schedules and class enrollment, visit www.nyc.gov/parks. To see the classics of the silver screen and hear the lap of waves against the shore, pack a picnic and head to one of four great waterfront parks. Socrates Sculpture Park’s On the Waterfront film series will take place Wednesday evenings until August 25 (socratessculpturepark.org). Brooklyn Bridge Park will screen films on Thursdays until August 12 (bbpc.net). At Hudson River Park, enjoy free popcorn with your flick on Wednesdays at Pier 54 and Fridays at Pier in Riverside Park they will roll out the projector at the 70th Street Pier every Thursday evening until September 2 and at 103rd Street on the Promenade every Wednesday evening until August 8 (riversideparkfund.org). City Parks Foundation is presenting free concerts and sports programs in a host of waterfront parks this summer. Check out concerts in Highbridge and Queensbridge Parks, golf lessons in Queensbridge Park and track lessons in Astoria and Red Hook Parks. For times at these sites and a full schedule of summer programs visit www.CityParksFoundation.org Beach clean-ups are always good in the summer season, especially on Monday mornings or the day after major holidays and heat waves. Crowds leave behind loads of litter that can cause lasting damage. To organize a beach cleanup, call (212) 360-1357. The American Littoral Society (Northeast chapter) will hold its 19th Annual International Coastal Cleanup on September 18. Participants will not only clear the beaches of debris, they will document the kind of litter they find, so that the pollution can be stopped at its source. To organize a cleanup in your area, call the Cleanup Hotline at (800) 449-0790 or contact Barbara Cohen at ALSBeach@aol.com. For a documentary look at the relationship between New Yorkers and their beaches, stop by an art exhibit at Parks & Recreation headquarters at 830 Fifth Ave. “Going Coastal: The Beaches of New York City” will be open weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. until September 2. For details visit www.nyc.gov/parks. It’s My Park! Day, a day of planting, cleaning, recreating, and community building will take place on October 16, 2004 in parks and waterfront areas all over the City. Last It’s My Park! Day on May 15th was a great success with over 4,300 participants at 167 projects and 24 events. Special thanks to media partners: The New York Times Community Affairs Department, The New York Observer, WB11 and WBLS. TRAIN TO BE A WETLAND STEWARD YOU KNOW HOW to raise funds for a park clean-up. You’ve refurbished park benches, lobbied for better lighting, and attracted concerts to your park. But what about your neighborhood’s natural areas? Can you count wading birds to help monitor salt marsh habitat? Can you be a watchdog against illegal soil erosion? This winter and spring, 15 New Yorkers were trained as Citizen Stewards in a course teamtaught by Partnerships for Parks, the Natural Resources Group, New York City Soil and Water Conservation District, and the Urban Park Rangers. The second year of Citizen Steward Certification Trainings will be offered at Inwood Hill and Marine Parks beginning in early 2005. For more information, please call our Technical Assistance Hotline at (212) 360-8180. WHAT TO PLANT BY THE WATER PARKS & RECREATION plants in cityscapes of all kinds, including plots of land right on the water. For beachfront property, gardeners choose plants that can tolerate sea spray and strong winds, such as bayberry, sweetpepperbush, black pine, jack pine, scrub oak, rugosa rose, and beach plum. On the riverfront, a different set of species thrives. These include willows, swamp white oaks, and redosier dogwood. If you are interested in planting or caring for plants along the waterfront, contact your outreach coordinator for resources and ideas. Happy planting! PARKS & RECREATION manages 12 marinas and more than 1,200 boat slips. New York City has 578 miles of waterfront, one third of which is parkland. WHERE TO BIKE To obtain a free copy of New York City’s official bicycle map, which plots waterfront routes in all five boroughs, call 311 and ask for the NYC Cycling Map. Pack it with a bottle of water and some sunscreen, and you’ll be set for an urban adventure on wheels. FOR “A RIVER OTTER’S VIEW OF NYC” Parks & Recreation’s Urban Park Rangers teach basic canoeing techniques and offer guided tours. For details call 311 and ask for the Urban Park Rangers. To canoe the Bronx River in particular, contact the Bronx River Alliance at (718) 430-4665. The NYC Downtown Boat House offers free kayaking on the Hudson River. For locations and more information, visit www.downtown boathouse.org. GRANT OPPORTUNITY THIS FALL, the New York City Environmental Fund (NYCEF) will be receiving proposals for projects that support New York City’s natural areas by promoting stewardship, enhancing access, providing education, fostering community involvement, and facilitating restoration. For complete information, call (212) 483-7667 or visit www.hudsonriver.org/ nycef.htm. Partnerships for Parks works to increase community support for and involvement in parks throughout New York City. Founded in 1995, Partnerships works to start, strengthen, and support neighborhood park groups; to link these groups together so that they can learn from each other and become stronger collectively; and to promote involvement in parks so people will join in efforts to restore and preserve them. Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor City of New York Adrian Benepe, Commissioner Parks & Recreation David Rivel, Executive Director City Parks Foundation Jenny Hoffner, Director Partnerships for Parks Editor: Dana Molina, Director, Volunteer Program Writer: Julia Schaffer http://www.partnershipsforparks.org http://www.nyc.gov/parks http://www.CityParksFoundation.org To contact Partnerships for Parks and for information on volunteering in parks, call (212) 360-1357 or call the City's non-emergency hotline, 311.

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