WELCOME
Welcome to the August edition of BPCA Connect!
We hope you are having a happy and healthy summer, and are enjoying the great events our community has to offer. Thank you so much for helping make Battery Park City the best it can be!
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News to know
NORTH COVE MARINA CONSTRUCTION
As you may have noticed, we have recently kicked off this year’s phase of the Battery Park City Underwater Pile Encasement Program, which will complete the remediation of all piles in the immediate vicinity of the North Cove Marina. This work is part of the BPCA’s multi-year Pile Remediation Capital Program and this year also includes some minor repairs to several underwater support caissons just south of the Marina. We expect this phase of work to be completed in November.
Stay tuned for future construction updates and status on the various capital projects taking place in the neighborhood!
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL REPORTS ON BATTERY PARK CITY REAL ESTATE
Battery Park City is now the place to be. At least that’s how BPC is praised in the July 31 Real Estate section of the Wall Street Journal.
In the past, Battery Park City was a place people walked through but rarely lingered in. “You used to want to go across the West Side Highway to Tribeca for a variety of eating and shopping,” said Shari Hyman, President of Battery Park City Authority. “Now it’s the reverse; people come over here for that.” Visitors to the 1.2-mile esplanade or adjacent parkland are now staying for events, like Shakespeare in Teardrop Park, or dining in one of the eateries.
Battery Park City is also benefiting from the overall popularity of Lower Manhattan, which now houses three times more residents than it did on 9/11, according to Jessica Lappin, President of the Downtown Alliance, a business -improvement district.
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UPCOMING EVENTS
TEEN ART PORTFOLIO DEVELOPMENT
Friday, July 31 marked the end of the Teen Art Portfolio Class. Students had a variety of art experiences during the four-week program. Along with learning technique and creating their own art under the guidance of staff art educators Elise Engler and Larry Dobens, the students also visited the working studios of artists Joyce Kozloff and Ellen Driscoll. They toured galleries with BPC Park’s Contemporary Art historian Dorothea Basile. The class used BPC’s own beautiful natural spaces and public art collection for inspiration and visited other downtown parks as well. On Thursday 7/30 they received an exclusive behind the scenes tour at MOMA. The program culminated with an exhibition at which the students presented their art to classmates and parents.
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THE BATTERY DANCE FESTIVAL
When: August 15, 2015 (6:30 pm – 8:30 pm);
August 21, 2015 (6:00 pm-8:00 pm)
Where: Robert F. Wagner Park; Pace University
Battery Dance Company will be holding its annual Battery Dance Festival this August in Robert F. Wagner Park. The Battery Dance Festival is New York City’s longest-running dance festival. Attendees will be able to take in the beautiful views of the New York Harbor, Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty while they are mesmerized by a repertoire of international dance performances by companies from around the world ranging from classical ballet to post-modern, Indian classical to Afro-Cuban.
VICTORY DAY SWING DANCE
When: Saturday, August 15, 6:30pm – 8:00 pm
Where: Esplanade Plaza
Celebrate the 70th Anniversary of the end of WWII at the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy’s Victory Day Family Swing Dance. Participants will be able to Swing-dance and Lindy-hop to the “Big Band” music of the Harlem Renaissance Orchestra. Dance Instructor Samuel Coleman will teach the Charleston and other dances of the era. Costumes are encouraged.
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OFFSHORE SAILING AND NORTH COVE SAILING SCHOOL HOST WOUNDED VETERANS REGATTA
When: August 18, 2015
Where: Brookfield Place
Offshore Sailing School will host a regatta for the Wounded Veterans Adaptive Sailing Program. The sailing school will provide its Colgate 26 fleet and instructor’s to conduct an orientation of the vessels and local waterways, and run the regatta in honor of the 20 Wounded Veterans participants who have progressed through the organizations Retreat and Adaptive Sailing Program.
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TEN TOPS: CURATOR’S TOUR
When: August 21, 2015, 3:00 pm
Where: The Skyscraper Museum
Director and curator Carol Willis will lead a curator’s tour of one of the museum’s latest exhibitions, TEN TOPS. The distinctive tops that add extra height to high-rises have been characteristic of New York skyscrapers from the first tall office buildings in the 1870s. TEN TOP focuses on the world’s tallest buildings: 100 stories and higher.
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JAKE RAJS & FRANCIS MORRONE BOOK TALK
When: August 19, 2015, from 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Where: Skyscraper Museum
Join Jake Rajs and Francis Morrone as they talk about their beautifully illustrated book “New York City Landmarks,” which captures more than 70 of New York City’s most celebrated architecture in vivid new images. Each image is accompanied by a short text, written by Francis Morrone.
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MOTOREXPO
When: September 13, 2015-September 19, 2015, from 11:00 am -6:00 pm Where: Brookfield Place
New York Motorexpo is a 7 day event being held at the Brookfield Place. The exciting week-long event will transform New York’s premier business district with the free-to-visit display of the latest vehicles from many of the world’s leading motor manufacturers. Visitors with be given the opportunity to talk with company representatives and find out more about the latest vehicle models. The event will showcase luxury cars, sport motorcycles, scooters, motorized bicycles, snowmobiles and more.
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People to meet
Eric “T” Fleisher, Director of Horticulture and his team at BPC Parks
T, as he is called, is the Director of Horticulture for the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy. T. has been the Director of Horticulture at Battery Park City Parks Conservancy for over 25 years, and it is his vision and ecological approach that has made Battery Park City’s horticulture an exemplary model for cities, towns and rural areas around the U.S. and the world.
While its subtle beauty may fly under the radar amongst the residential and commercial components of Battery Park City, there lies an ecologically sustainable, organic and green system of gardens. What remains hidden is the scientific process and expertise it takes to produce such a system of thriving gardens. This is where the work of T. Fleisher and the BPC Parks staff come into full force.
T asks businesses and residents of Battery Park City to regularly recycle their food wastes, and these wastes then come to his composting facility at the Parks Conservancy offices. From there, T’s horticulture staff cultivates the compost to build up its biodiversity in order to create a healthy soil teeming with microbiological life. Fungi, bacteria, protozoa and other microscopic life harmoniously thrive in the soil he creates. It is remarkable to learn that the soil has not been fertilized for over five years! This is all attributable to T and his team’s scientific process and work.
Pictured above are T and two of his team members: Adam Choper, Senior Horticulturist and Ryan Torres, Foreperson of Horticulture. Adam is responsible for maintaining and managing the delicate ecological balance of the composting process, while Ryan oversees the daily operation of the Horticulture Department. It is due to the tireless efforts of T, Adam and Ryan that we are able to enjoy the beautiful gardens we see each day. If you happen to see them around, make sure to say “thanks for the great work!”
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