NYCkayaker Roosevelt Island Memorial alternative

[gpollara at feri.org]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Erik Baard" <erikbaard at gmail.com>
To: gpollara at feri.org
Cc: webmaster at rooseveltisland.us, ccraft at waterwire.net,
rlewis at waterwire.net,  rmelnick99 at earthlink.net,
rooseveltislander at gmail.com,  editor at MainStreetWIRE.com,
info at carolynmaloney.com,  lappin at council.nyc.ny.us,
KellnerM at assembly.state.ny.us,  nyckayaker at rockandwater.net,
cyberharbor at treebranch.com
Subject: Roosevelt Island Memorial alternative
Date: Wed, 30 Apr 2008 13:47:16 -0400

> Ms. Gina Pollara
> Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute
> 
> Dear Ms. Pollara,
> 
>  Franklin D. Roosevelt certainly deserves a memorial in
> view of the United Nations that respects the Louis I. Kahn
> vision, the environment, and the timeless beauty of
> nature. In that light I propose that the Kahn design be
> expressed through natural elements that enhance its sense
> of place in the harbor.
> 
>  As the founder of the LIC Community Boathouse and
> www.NatureCalendar.com<http://www.naturecalendar.com/>I
> have spent many hours as a volunteer harbor and estuary
> ecology advocate kayaking around Roosevelt Island and
> admiring its green southern tip from the nearby Queens
> waterfront. What happens at the southern tip of Roosevelt
> Island is viewed by more lovers of our estuary heritage in
> Manhattan and Queens than on Roosevelt Island itself. This
> letter reflects my personal concerns and hopes for the
> site.
> 
>  A V-shaped colonnade of indigenous trees is the central
> visual element of the Kahn design, and that can be
> responsibly included in a final design. It could still
> flank a sustainable and lush greensward and garden, but
> elevating it would be a needless pouring of concrete.
> 
> The retaining wall edging the entire tip of the island
> will be both costly and damaging to the environment. What
> is needed is a soft shoreline that allows harbor birds,
> tidal pool creatures, and saltwater plants to live. A soft
> shoreline also offers safe landings in emergencies to
> paddlers and rowers, who will be surrounding the island in
> far greater numbers over the coming years (many of whom
> will be Roosevelt Island residents).
> 
> You are also seeking higher maintenance costs and
> significant hassles with a retaining wall, as can be
> witnessed across the strait at Queensbridge Park. Instead,
> I recommend that you save millions of dollars in
> construction that will be unattractive and environmentally
> unfriendly by retaining the edge largely as is, improved
> only by cleaning and aiding the habitat restoration that
> is underway through natural propagation.
> 
> This is in keeping with the "blue wave" that is
> refashioning New York Harbor into a place of recreation
> and education. The NYC Department of Parks and
> Recreation's recently inaugurated NYC Water Trail
> encourages soft shorelines for safety, ecology, and
> aesthetics.
> 
> To meet ADA access needs, perhaps the funds saved by
> omitting the unneeded retaining wall could be used for
> paving a perimeter path with NYC bedrock, recycled from
> construction and tunneling. Not only does the use of
> native stone (more attractive than typical concrete)
> better respect the environment and serve to give visitors
> a sense of ubiety, it symbolizes the profound role that
> the Roosevelt family has played in the history of our
> city's culture and civics.
> 
> The monument itself can be made from the bedrock as well.
> But instead of a confining room (which is also a dull spot
> in the vista of those looking out onto the harbor),
> perhaps have inclined slabs that allow visitors to read
> the immortal quotations while enjoying the uplift of
> openness all around. It would be ironic to have the Four
> Freedoms speech carved into confining walls.
> 
> I hope you consider this less costly, more environmentally
> friendly, and less rigid alternative. To execute an
> inherited plan without question would be contrary to the
> central lesson taught by the lives of both Franklin D.
> Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt.
> 
> Thank you for your consideration.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Erik Baard
> 917 687 0896
> www.licboathouse.org
> www.naturecalendar.com
> 

Gina Pollara
Executive Director
Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial
Four Freedoms Park
66 West 35 Street, Suite 656
New York NY 10001

t. 212-615-3340
f. 212-967-2702