Posted Sep 17, 2024, 1:24 AM
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New Yorker for life
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Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Borough of Jersey
Posts: 52,847
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https://w42st.com/post/save-our-sacr...ier-76-meetup/
Save Our “Sacred Place” — Roller Skaters Take a Stand for Under-Threat Pier 76 Meetup
by Lena Grotticelli
9/10/2024
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Roller skaters have found a new home by the water in Hell’s Kitchen — but with their “sacred place” under threat, they’re rallying around in the hope of keeping the wheels turning.
The unlikely coveted concrete haven is Pier 76 at W36th Street and 12th Avenue, and at first glance, looks like an empty lot with a few benches and planters. But head down just before sunset on a Friday night and you’ll find an energized mix of citygoers using the spacious hub for pickup pickleball games or recording dances and music videos. Others can be seen prepping for events like this month’s NYC Unicycle Festival and New York Latin Food Fest — or in the past for popups and Tribeca Film Festival openings.
And without fail, you’ll see skaters on four-wheel quads and inlines, like me, who religiously flock to the smooth mecca for its perfect pavement and unique 245,000-square-feet sans obstacles or traffic. Breezy nights on the open-air space see the Pier 76 Skate community host free meetups, skating group RollerDynamic give classes, and skaters-turned-friends trading turns, tips and tricks.
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City skaters recently launched a petition after Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation in July paving the way for future redevelopment of Pier 76 as a hybrid park and commercial space. It “will eventually host both public parkland and a revenue-generating use that will help support the care, maintenance and operations of the Park as a whole,” the Hudson River Park Trust says, as the pier is in need of $150 million worth of structural repairs.
...“In addition to being a setting where we can safely practice our art and sport, Pier 76 has organically become a place of community for us,” the skaters’ petition reads. “It has become the go-to spot for meetups and rollouts, for lessons and dancing. It is no exaggeration to say this pier, in its current state, has become a sacred place for skaters.”
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Bash, an inline skater and the founder of Pier 76 Skate, said, “There’s not a lot of places in the city you can come to as a skater for free to relax and enjoy, especially at night. A lot of places are dark and dangerous and not very safe, as opposed to the pier, where the lights come on before it even gets dark. So we have that security.”
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The Pier 76 legislation approved by the state this June is an amendment of the Hudson River Park Act sponsored by local Assemblymember Tony Simone and state Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, promising to redevelop the space with at least 50% parkland and up to 50% commercial use.
“It’s early on so we don’t fully know what’s happening,” Bash said. “But from what we’re getting wind of, it doesn’t seem like we’re going to have a place with everything that’s going to be planned.”
So what’s in store for Pier 76? Its exact design plans and a timeline for changes are still far off. Potential new additions floated in the past have included restaurants, offices, a transit hub, event venues and tourist attractions like a National Sports Museum or an ocean-liner turned hotel. The legislation prohibits casinos, hotels and residential use, but opens up discussions for moving the existing heliport at W30th Street.
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Senator Hoylman-Sigal said, “The new vision of Pier 76 is one of a green space for the entire community to enjoy, while simultaneously providing the revenue needed to bring the pier to the beautiful standard that New York City is accustomed to.”
But green space doesn’t necessarily mean a smooth place to roll for skaters, who want to make part of it inclusive, accessible and similar to Venice Beach skate park in Los Angeles.
“We ask for an area of flat and leveled, smooth and continuous poured concrete, spanning more than 15,000 square feet, that is preferably well-lit and partially covered, to facilitate free year-round use for skaters of all ages, skill levels and physical abilities,” the petition states. A bathroom also wouldn’t hurt, they say.
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Other proposals that have been unofficially floated for Pier 76 include a National Sports Museum and the SS United States ocean liner converted into a luxury hotel.
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