Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway Coming to Life on West Street

A two-way protected bike lane is taking shape on seven blocks of West Street in Greenpoint, part of a Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway segment that will eventually run 12 blocks between Eagle Street and Quay Street.

The Department of Design and Construction began work on West Street last spring, more than three years after the design was approved by the local community board. The project also includes bioswales and high-level sewers to prevent stormwater from overwhelming the sewage system underneath the street.

Today Con Ed crews were digging up West Street between Java and India. North of that block, West Street remains unpaved and is being used partially as a construction staging zone. A spokesperson for DDC told Streetsblog that greenway work is on hold while the agency “[coordinates] with the pier property owners and Con Edison.”

The West Street project is one of 23 segments that will eventually comprise the full 14-mile Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway between Greenpoint and Sunset Park.

No other segments began construction in 2016, according to Brian McCormick of the non-profit Brooklyn Greenway Initiative. But design is complete for two segments — Flushing Avenue along the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Hamilton Avenue in Sunset Park — that are now ready for construction.

DDC says the Flushing Avenue segment will start construction this month. The design was approved by Brooklyn CB 2 in 2013, then was delayed while National Grid relocated a gas main that interfered with construction.