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Defend Governors Island
On September 26 I attended a public hearing on the phased development of Governors Island South Island Development Zones. It was held by the city and the Trust For Governors Island get public feedback on the planned rezoning of the South End of the Island for use by hotels, convention center, technology center, and other purposes. All of the project plans and proposals are found here. It was at times raucous crowd, as reported by the New York Times, to speak out about the future of the Island. This is the first of many nights that are brought forth by the Mayor’s Office of Environmental Coordination. Among the two in…
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Mayor Picks Architect & Planner Samuelian as Next President of Governors Island
The city announced yesterday it is tapping an architect and urban planner as the next president of the Trust for Governors Island. Michael M. Samuelian is a vice president at the Related Companies, one of the nation’s biggest privately owned real estate firms, and he teaches at Cooper Union. He will step into the role vacated by Leslie Koch, the visionary leader of the Island for ten years, who stepped down last month after The Hills opened. By naming someone who comes from a strong real estate and construction background, the city signals that it wants to develop the two empty development zones on the south end, which featured prominently…
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New York Post: The Hills Open in 2016
The New York Post today has a good story about the progress of The Hills. While The Trust For Governors Island was always planning to have The Hills ready to use in 2016, this story confirms it. The development on the South end of the Island has been coming to a big milestone with The Hills being prepared for visitors. The other salient point in the article is that 1,000 more trees are being planted this spring, which is on top of the more than 2,000 that have been planted in the past three years. The story says: Governors Island is on the fast-track to getting a lot greener, with…
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New Chapter in Island Transformation, New Tenants Designated
The Trust for Governors Island (The Trust) today announced the next chapter in the transformation of Governors Island into a year-round vibrant destination in New York Harbor. The Trust announced at a meeting of its Board of Directors that it has designated three tenants for its historic buildings. The new tenant announced today is a day spa that will be open year-round to the public. In addition, the Urban Assembly New York Harbor School and the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council’s Art Center at Governors Island, two existing Island tenants, will expand. The Trust also announced that for the first time, Governors Island will be open seven days a week in…
