What Should We Do with Governor’s Island?
Discussion Board, Hosted by The Gotham Center for New York City History
INDEX
U.N. on GOV. ISLAND / eljefe / 4/26/08 At 1:28:PM / 0Gov. Island / Gothamite / 4/15/08 At 5:32:PM / 0
Check It Out / CharlieP. / 1/18/08 At 6:32:PM / 1
Simple / Anita / 1/17/08 At 1:14:PM / 0
Goversnors Island / PJB / 12/19/07 At 12:38:PM / 0
AnthonyZ. / m.l.k. Monument / 11/16/07 At 4:07:PM / 2
New Question Needed / CharlieP. / 11/13/07 At 11:07:AM / 0
Park / T.J. / 10/2/07 At 4:17:PM / 2
Ethnic Diversity Par... / charlie / 9/24/07 At 10:07:AM / 1
Put a language schoo... / Former Resident / 7/18/07 At 7:11:PM / 0
June 27, 2007 Tour G... / Chris / 6/21/07 At 7:33:PM / 0
Governors Island, NY / Eli Takesian / 6/14/07 At 7:22:AM / 1
REJECTION GOVERNORS ... / Fndn for Historic New Amsterda / 5/4/07 At 3:14:PM / 2
SHARED MUTUAL HERITA... / Fndn for Historic New Amsterda / 2/27/07 At 9:36:PM / 1
MORAL CONSCIENCE / Fndn for Hist. New Amsterdam / 12/1/06 At 8:53:AM / 0
lease it / Just thinking... / 10/28/06 At 6:13:AM / 0
NATURAL RIGHT + ENDU... / Fndn for Hist. New Amsterdam / 7/20/06 At 12:07:PM / 1
REV. KING JR. PAPERS / Fndn for Hist. New Amsterdam / 7/20/06 At 11:56:AM / 3
Artist Space / CVB / 5/25/06 At 1:13:AM / 1
COURTESY of CIVILIZE... / Fndn for Historic New Amsterda / 5/11/06 At 8:51:PM / 6
New Netherland Music / Warrior18 / 4/14/06 At 5:04:PM / 0
DEFENDING NY'S INHER... / Fndn for Historic New Amsterda / 3/22/06 At 9:09:PM / 2
Dutch Village / pacholewka / 2/16/06 At 2:26:PM / 0
MARTIN LUTHER KING'S... / Fndn for Historic New Amsterda / 1/15/06 At 12:25:PM / 10
DISRESPECTING MOMENT... / Fndn for Historic New Amsterda / 12/1/05 At 5:55:PM / 6
ERROR BY OMISSION, P... / Fndn for Hist. New Amsterdam / 10/20/05 At 11:01:PM / 6
What shall we do wit... / Eli Takesian / 10/18/05 At 11:37:PM / 3
UNDERSTANDING AMERIC... / Fndn for Historic New Amsterda / 9/10/05 At 11:05:PM / 5
SYMBOL vs COMMERCIAL / Fndn for Historic New Amsterda / 8/10/05 At 10:34:AM / 5
Ask a New Yorker / K / 4/8/05 At 8:22:AM / 7
TRANSFORMING PLURALI... / Fndn for Hist. New Amsterdam / 3/19/05 At 3:33:PM / 4
Governor's Island / Janet / 3/18/05 At 11:18:AM / 1
OBLITERATION STATE L... / Fndn for Hist. New Amsterdam / 3/15/05 At 1:27:PM / 6
AUSCHWITZ COMMEMORAT... / Fndn for Hist. New Amsterdam / 1/28/05 At 5:34:PM / 5
re: / SW / 12/6/04 At 10:22:PM / 1
Preservation / Jerry France / 11/27/04 At 8:52:AM / 0
Integrate the island... / SW / 11/23/04 At 10:14:PM / 3
Be Careful with Gove... / jeff holmes / 11/16/04 At 2:27:PM / 0
gov island plan / richie ny / 11/15/04 At 2:35:PM / 2
PRESIDENTIAL PETITIO... / Foundation for Historic New Am / 11/2/04 At 9:55:AM / 6
IDEAL GEOGRAPHY / NEWSDAY, Sept. 29, 2004 / 9/30/04 At 4:12:PM / 0
9-11-1609 Heritage R... / Fndn Hist New Amsterdam / 9/11/04 At 2:44:PM / 1
JEWISH ARRIVAL 350 Y... / Fndn Hist New Amsterdam / 8/25/04 At 4:03:PM / 3
PUBLIC MEETING, July... / Fndn for Hist. New Amsterdam / 8/2/04 At 10:47:AM / 1
FIRST NY WINDMILL / Ann Buttenwieser Consulting / 6/16/04 At 11:40:AM / 9
LARGE SCALE MIXED US... / Fndn Hist. New Amsterdam / 5/3/04 At 12:36:PM / 1
STAKING A CLAIM ON G... / PRNewswire/April22/2004 / 4/23/04 At 11:06:AM / 6
PRICELESS NATIONAL S... / Fdn Hist New Amsterdam / 3/2/04 At 2:02:PM / 5
LEGISLATIVE ACTION / Fdn Hist New Amsterdam / 2/5/04 At 4:40:PM / 4
ULTIMATE VIRTUE / Fdn Hist New Amsterdam / 12/17/03 At 1:30:PM / 6
State and City to de... / Pres, Bill J. Clinton / 12/17/03 At 10:55:AM / 4
LIFEBLOOD OF LIBERTY / Fndn Hist New Amsterdam / 11/18/03 At 2:20:PM / 5
BEACON OF HISTORY / NEWSDAY, May 24 2001 / 11/15/03 At 11:00:AM / 7
Six Year Summary, Po... / Fdn Hist New Amsterdam / 11/6/03 At 7:10:PM / 0
Introduction/Hist. R... / Fdn HistNewAmsterdam / 11/6/03 At 7:01:PM / 2
NYC's 350th - Interf... / Roland Rogers / 11/6/03 At 6:53:PM / 5
NY Times OpEd articl... / Prof. Leo Hershskowitz / 11/6/03 At 6:32:PM / 4
Legislative Resoluti... / NY State Legislature / 11/6/03 At 6:27:PM / 4
Nat. African America... / Fndn Hist. New Amste / 11/6/03 At 6:11:PM / 1
National Heritage Tr... / Fndn for Hist. New A / 11/6/03 At 6:01:PM / 6
History Corrected / Joep de Koning / 11/6/03 At 5:44:PM / 2
worldwide cultural p... / KidsToday.net / 6/14/03 At 3:18:PM / 2
Moral, Philosophic a... / From WALTER CRONKITE / 5/1/03 At 9:49:PM / 8
First Amendment on G... / Fndn Hist. New A'dam / 3/19/03 At 4:02:PM / 3
Jurisdictional Trans... / State of New York / 2/10/03 At 5:14:PM / 8
Appeal / Chief Rabbi of Rome / 12/14/02 At 7:53:PM / 1
Harbor Tolerance Sym... / Joep de Koning / 11/3/02 At 1:48:PM / 0
G.I. designated NYS ... / State Legislature / 11/2/02 At 11:40:AM / 8
Varied Use Campus fo... / michael frost / 9/9/02 At 12:29:PM / 0
Governor's Island / Pat Bonomi / 5/16/02 At 11:47:AM / 6
Governors Island / Mike Wallace / 5/2/02 At 5:09:PM / 7
Author / Subject
Mike Wallace / Governors Island•posted 5/2/02 5:09:PM
I've been asked by City University Chancellor Matthew Goldstein to serve -- as a representative of the CUNY faculty -- on a committee to figure out how best to use Governor's Island. I think I can be most useful as a conduit for ideas generated by CUNY faculty and students, and by any concerned citizens, and so I've set up this discussion board and information center.
There are a lot of interesting ideas floating around that make use of the Island's location -- in but not quite of the City, a place to withdraw from Gotham the better to reflect or act upon it. Some of these take off from enterprises in which CUNY is currently engaged, and involve students coming to the island for short term immersion programs, ranging from seminars on city issues, to English immersion courses, to workforce training in conjunction with unions and employers (for nurses, say, as per the program being run in conjunction with 1199, or for artisanal trades, such as those run by the Center for Worker Education). Others focus on a research park or incubator model for new manufacturing sectors, from biotech to ecoindustrial development. Another approach is for CUNY to spearhead a multi-university consortium -- amazingly, we have no institution that fosters cooperation among the many participants in New York City's hi! gher education sector -- for collective tackling of assorted urban issues. There are also suggestions for enhancing public access to the island's green spaces, or for recreating old New Amsterdam as a historic attraction.
We'd love to hear from you. Click here to post your proposal and read those posted by others, and send us as well any other web sites that bear on the subject. Thanks in advance for your help.
Mike Wallace
Robert Pirani / Governors Island•posted 5/7/02 1:56:PM
The Regional Plan Association and the Governors Island Alliance have been advocating for public access, park space, and preservation of the Island's historic district, and have developed some specific ideas on how that can be achieved. For a Q and A piece that speaks to some of the issues you’ve raised, see http://reclaimgovernorsisland.org/Reclaim/qa.htm. More later.
Richard Mooney / DON'T LOOK A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH•posted 5/20/02 8:48:AM
When someone gives you a horse it is bad manners to count its teeth - a sign of its age - without first giving sincere thanks. President Bush has made a generous pledge to return Governors Island in New York harbor to its rightful owner, the State of New York, for a "modest" price, provided only that it be used as a facility for the City University. Before we count the teeth in this deal, let there be resounding cheers. The island is a 172-acre jewel just off Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan, rich with history and magnificent open space in an incomparable harbor setting. For most of the past two centuries it was a major Army base and then a Coast Guard command center. When they no longer needed it the government put it up for sale to the highest bidder. The President's offer removes that depressing possibility. That's a tremendous relief.
The idea of planting some part of CUNY out there is really just that, an idea, apparently devised overnight without much thought and probably as a favor to Governor Pataki, currently running for a third term. So be it. That's politics. What matters above all is that the island is that the deal commits the island to public use, not private property. The absence of detail is actually a blessing -- an opportunity for healthy public airing of the possibilities.
Full disclosure: I belong to the Governors Island Alliance, a group of organizations and individuals concerned with developments in and around New York harbor. (I'm also retired from the New York Times editorial page, where I wrote about planning for Governors Island.) These thoughts are my own.
Two immediate concerns spring to mind. First and most immediate is the need for federal legislation to clear up the uncertain status of the Governors Island National Monument - a 20-acre site surrounding and linking two historic forts constructed to defend the harbor just prior to the War of 1812. The monument should also be enlarged. My second concern is that any plan for the island's future should provide for public access, not just for tourists visiting the forts, and certainly not just for young people with student passes.
The island has two distinct halves. The historic northern half has the forts and some three dozen 19th-century officers' houses flanking a 20-acre parade ground, plus a huge 20th century building large enough to house a regiment. This northern half is a New York City Landmark, subject to strict limits on any architectural changes. The buildings on the southern half date are mainly apartments and row houses from the 1920's and even the 1980's, built for Army and Coast Guard families. They have been mothballed since the Coast Guard left in 1996, and their physical condition has deteriorated to the point that they could not be used to house service personnel who came to New York for the World Trade Center emergency.
President Clinton and Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan once struck a deal to return the island to New York for $1 if Albany and City Hall presented a satisfactory plan for its use. Alas, they dawdled. Eventually they presented a rough idea of what they might like to do, but it didn't past muster in Washington. At the eleventh hour of his presidency, Mr. Clinton issued an executive order creating the National Monument under the National Park Service. It was so poorly drawn that the monument might have ceased to exist if the island had been sold to private ownership.
Representatives Jerrold Nadler and Carolyn Maloney are sponsoring legislation to assure the monument's permanence. It should be enlarged at the same time. As drawn it embraces the two forts and open space between them. To draw tourists it needs a modest visitors center, preferably with a restaurant or at least a snack bar at the water's edge, a spectacular setting that would look straight out at the Statue of Liberty.
Not knowing what CUNY may have in mind for all or part of the island, it must nonetheless dead with the existence of the National Monument, which guarantees that there will be visitors. They will almost certainly pay to get there, by ferry, and perhaps to enter the forts. Access by the general public is another matter.
In these years of budget distress, all levels of government seek ways to cut costs and raise revenue. Considering the costs of redesigning Lower Manhattan, there is understandable pressure on CUNY to keep its costs down. Whatever it decides to do, it will probably try to conserve on capital costs by renovating buildings in the southern half, whether for classrooms or dormitories. It might also use the historic houses in the northern half for faculty housing. Operating costs will have to come from city and state budgets and student fees. But there is no fee for John Q. to amble in Central Park, and there must be no fee - other than the ferry - for ambling and picnicking on the waterfront esplanade that circles the island. There must also be space for play. The open area in the center of the southern half has accommodated as many as eight baseball fields. Let it remain open, for baseball, soccer, Frisbee or whatever. New York City needs public playing fields. There are not enough of them, and many are scattered to remote locations; the time it takes to get to Governors Island should be no obstacle. The greater obstacle would arise if CUNY claimed the Governors Island fields for exclusive CUNY use.
Thank you for giving back our island, Mr. Bush. Now let's get on with the public ventilating over what and what not - to do with in.
Hist. New Amsterdam / Nat. Iconographic Triad•posted 11/2/02 1:21:PM
Your comment on a possible recreation of New Amsterdam may have come from the efforts of the Foundation for Historic New Amsterdam (a public, not-for-profit, 501 (C) (3) organization) which has been seeking political approval, since 1997, for a NATIONAL HERITAGE TRIANGLE in New York harbor.
The Triangle would represent America’s fundamental values of Tolerance, Freedom and Welcome as embodied by Governors Island, Liberty Island and Ellis Island, respectively.
The notion of tolerance is to be symbolized by a Historic New Amsterdam park as a national monument. The legal-political guaranty of tolerance was planted on American shore by New York’s first settlers who disembarked on Governors Island in 1624 - the place and date of birth of, amongst other, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. It was America’s earliest pluralistic community - an enlightened culture of inclusion and diversity - unprecedented for the time and based on free trade. It constitutes the basis of New York’s cultural history. Freedom has no meaning in an intolerant society - witness the 1930’s or the recent September 11, 2001 destruction of the Twin Towers. Tolerance, therefore, precedes liberty. It is New York’s unique contribution to the nation and requires one’s considerateness as an implicit gift to another.