Maybe, because the board recognized the space for the first time in years. Terribly neglected. Filthy. But there. Maybe change is possible.
But really, reviving the atrium in a vacuum ignores the broader public space. Most don’t even notice it’s there.
Yet, in fact, RIOC contemplates even worse: uprooting vibrant cherry trees, destroying public space by pour tons of wet concrete in to finish off a Palace of Versailles bike ramp.
RIOC: Save This Space Perspective
In perspective, seen from the connected ball field and basketball court, the Atrium’s extended public space can be picked out immediately: It’s where RIOC’s abandoned multiple, ugly rusting containers.
Up close, the ugliness prevails. Rusted, graffiti covered containers occupy space meant to enhance public enjoyment. Does RIOC retain some right to take over our space and use it as a junkyard?
Graffiti and mold dominate an area leading along the grassy, tree-filled public space. A set of stairs waits.
In spite of being ignored by landscapers, surrounded by filthy, mature cherry trees near full bloom. The lawn looks forgotten.
But even before you get that far, more dumped off construction material greets you.
Another abandoned container… construction debris left in heaps. Why is this space a public junkyard?
A reversal means taking responsibility…
RIOC: Save This Space… Across the road, adjacent to the atrium, it’s actually worse.
Startlingly, while RIOC plans a virtually gold-plated bike ramp, there’s a bicycle graveyard right alongside.
But before removing all the bikes, Chief McManus went on sick leave. He later retired, his program abandoned, along with bike safety.
Possibly a greater insult than wrecking public space, RIOC’s cold refusal to honor island history… The original Tram cabins left to rot and rust for a decade now. RIOC’s rejected every suggestion for repurposing them, but at least one of the ideas must’ve been better than this.
Treating the historic Tram like debris didn’t stop with the cabins.
The original pulleys that carried Tram cables for 25 years were saved for history. Then left to rust by RIOC, fenced outdoors for close to a decade.
Completing the awful picture, immediately outside the Tram cages, eroding and filthy, a wide set of steps meant for people and community life, left as dead as the original Tram.
In perspective, public space extending from the ball fields to Motorgate is integrated. The green space within the helix… That’s where RIOC plans to pour tons of concrete for a lightly used Palace of Versailles bike ramp. Because the state neglected the area for so long, its value is dangerously unappreciated.
Conclusion
RIOC needs to save this space, not destroy it with a bike ramp.
In hot pursuit of an Albany grant, RIOC creates a false need for bicycle access to Roosevelt Island. That’s already here, always has been.
The only thing we lacked was Albany cash. So, RIOC invented a need for it.
This should not stand.
Take a look at last week’s Farmers Market in the public space, and you get an idea of its vibrant potential.
Turning this space into a junkyard, then an unneeded bike ramp, is a betrayal of public trust.
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