Department of Parks & Recreation

The New Plan to Connect Downtown Brooklyn to Its Waterfront

Starting in the 1930s, entire city blocks in Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, and DUMBO were razed for expressways and parks. Today, this jumble of on-ramps and disconnected green space separates Brooklyn's waterfront from its downtown core. A new public-private initiative, called "The Brooklyn Strand," seeks to knit these disjointed areas back together.

By Stephen Miller

4:59 PM EDT on March 18, 2015

The "Brooklyn Strand" covers blocks cleared for expressways and parks in the 20th Century. Map: WXY Architecture [PDF] — The “Brooklyn Strand” seeks to improve walking and biking connections in an area cut up by highway ramps in the 1930s. Map: WXY Architecture

Starting in the 1930s, entire city blocks in Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, and DUMBO were razed for expressways and parks. Today, this jumble of on-ramps and disconnected green space separates Brooklyn’s waterfront from its downtown core. A new public-private initiative, called “The Brooklyn Strand,” seeks to knit these disjointed areas back together.

On Monday evening, Claire Weisz of WXY Architecture + Urban Design presented the design [PDF] to the Brooklyn Community Board 2 parks committee, Curbed reports. The project is a joint effort of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, Brooklyn Bridge Park, the Mayor’s Office, the Parks Department, and the Department of City Planning.

The plan recommends turning a quiet block of Cadman Plaza East into a pedestrian plaza. Image: WXY Architecture — The plan recommends pedestrianizing a lightly-trafficked block of Cadman Plaza East. Image: WXY Architecture

The plan has been in the works for a year and builds on other initiatives already underway, like bicycle and pedestrian improvements in DUMBO and near the Brooklyn Bridge entrance at the intersection of Tillary and Adams Streets. It also echoes many of the public space proposals from Transportation Alternatives and the Brooklyn Tech Triangle strategic plan.

The Brooklyn Strand proposal recommends replacing the parking lot between Borough Hall and Adams Street with an underground garage topped by a plaza, reclaiming space from cars in front of the General Post Office building, and adding new bike lanes, according to the Brooklyn Daily Eagle.

Washington Street would become a pedestrian-priority street where the stairway to the Brooklyn Bridge path meets ground level. Image: WXY Architecture

The plan would also improve walking connections to the Brooklyn Bridge in DUMBO, creating a pedestrian-priority street where the stairs to the bridge touch down on Washington Street. Space beneath the bridge could be converted to retail use.

Parks and disconnected green spaces along the Brooklyn Queens Expressway east of the Manhattan Bridge will host events and installations from artist group Superflex starting next month. Long-term, the plan calls for better walking and biking connections between all of those spaces.

Stephen Miller

In spring 2017, Stephen wrote for Streetsblog USA, covering the livable streets movement and transportation policy developments around the nation. From August 2012 to October 2015, he was a reporter for Streetsblog NYC, covering livable streets and transportation issues in the city and the region. After joining Streetsblog, he covered the tail end of the Bloomberg administration and the launch of Citi Bike. Since then, he covered mayoral elections, the de Blasio administration's ongoing Vision Zero campaign, and New York City's ever-evolving street safety and livable streets movements.

Department of Parks & Recreation | Downtown Brooklyn Partnership | DUMBO | Parks | Urban Planning

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