The East River Esplanade is falling apart. Why is this vital public waterfront a patchwork of closures, sinkholes, deteriorating pilings, and disintegrating bulkhead walls? FRIENDS calls on the NYC Parks Commissioner, the Mayor’s Office, and all relevant city agencies to prioritize a simple but essential goal: ensure continuous public access to the East River Esplanade and commit to the routine maintenance necessary to keep this public asset open, safe, and usable.
The Esplanade is essential infrastructure. For thousands of New Yorkers, it serves as a transportation corridor, recreational resource, environmental buffer, and neighborhood gathering place. Stretching from Midtown to East Harlem, it provides critical access to open space and the waterfront for residents who rely on it every day.
Open space is scarce. On the Upper East Side and in East Harlem, the need for safe, accessible outdoor space becomes especially apparent during the summer months, when public access to the waterfront supports physical health, mental well-being, and community life. For many residents, the Esplanade is one of the few continuous public spaces available within walking distance.
Deferred maintenance is costly. Often presented as a budget-saving strategy, postponing routine repairs ultimately creates larger and more expensive problems. Yet substantial sections of the Esplanade remain closed, deteriorated, or inaccessible after decades of neglect. Sinkholes, failing decking, compromised pilings, and prolonged closures are the predictable result of allowing minor maintenance issues to become major structural failures.
The consequences were foreseeable. Community organizations, including Friends of the East River Esplanade and CIVITAS, have warned for years that this pattern would lead to exactly the conditions we see today. Deferred maintenance does not save money; it increases costs, turns repairs into reconstruction projects, and deprives the public of access to essential civic infrastructure.
The City must act now. We urge City leaders to prioritize reopening inaccessible sections of the Esplanade, expedite critical repairs, and implement a long-term maintenance plan that prevents future closures. New York City cannot continue relying on a cycle of deferred maintenance followed by emergency responses. Safe and reliable waterfront access is essential to public health, mobility, neighborhood equity, and quality of life.
This is a matter of stewardship. We are not asking for another billion-dollar mega project. We are asking the City to maintain and protect the public infrastructure it already owns. New Yorkers need open waterfronts, functioning public infrastructure, and well-maintained public spaces that can be enjoyed every day. Maintaining what we already have is one of the smartest and most important investments the City can make.
