NYC’s East River Esplanade closed for fourth summer in a row as residents rage over never-ending construction: ‘Embarrassment to New York’
The start of summer made blistering waves this week — but the record-breaking heat only reminded Upper East Siders that they were entering yet another season without access to their waterfront esplanade.
This summer marks the fourth in a row that the East River Esplanade has been severed between 70th and 78th streets as part of an excruciating construction project that has breezed past numerous estimated completion dates — enraging residents eager to get their neighborhood back.
The seven-block stretch of waterfront pathway won’t be open again to the public until 2026, The Post has learned — more than two years after initially promised.
“This has been going on for years, which is crazy to me,” said Jennifer Ratner, the board chair and founder of the Friends of the East River Esplanade.
“They say they’re paying overages, but I don’t really care. They need to return it better than it was and ensure the waterfront is continuous … This isn’t rocket science.”
Residents were originally on board with the esplanade’s closure back in 2021 when the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) kicked off its project to build a new, 12-story tower that mimics an existing structure over the FDR Drive at 71st Street.
In exchange for being allowed to shut down the space, HSS had promised to beautify the seven-block stretch.
The new Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Tower will span 100,000 square feet when completed and will increase hospital capacity by 25%, but it hit numerous snags when crews discovered three sinkholes at the site.
The initial opening date was slated for the fall of 2024, with neighbors anticipating that the esplanade would be reopened sometime in 2023 as crews put the finishing touches on the building — but their dreams were quickly dashed.
Emails shared with The Post from last July indicate HSS was aiming to reopen “for as much as summer of 2025 as possible,” but the can was kicked yet again down the road.
The construction site is still a mess of exposed wood planks and piles of unopened boxes. Plants were severely overgrown along the pathway portion that HSS promised to beautify.
The only thing that has changed over the last few months is a souring relationship between neighbors and HSS, according to Ratner.
“If you’re on the West Side or Brooklyn Bridge Park — or frankly, at most major cities or even small cities in America — you can just keep going on your bike, running, walking with your kids in a stroller, whatever it is. And you can’t do it anymore. It’s really a shame,” Ratner said.
The closed path is a quality-of-life issue, the locals argue.
The roughly half-mile detour forces pedestrians back onto the chaotic streets, and cyclists who want to ride on a bike lane must go one block further into the island.
The detour is also not clearly marked off, with no signage directing pedestrians through a confusing mess of green construction fencing — the city Parks Department plans to add signage next week, fulfilling a promise the agency made in April.
“We’re very limited in where we can go. This was a beautiful, calming place for families. I see families on bikes turn around instead of going into the street. It is a real safety issue,” said Celeste Garson, a school social worker, calling the ongoing construction a “tease.”
Plus, greenspace in the neighborhood is already limited, with Garson and her family living 30 minutes away from Central Park.
Garson is especially saddened for children like her 14-year-old son, who is missing out on the greenspace during a pivotal moment in his childhood, in which he is too old for the playgrounds.
“I think it’s inexcusable and so frustrating. At this point, I don’t feel like it’s ever going to open because they keep extending the deadline every year. It doesn’t seem very optimistic that will ever open because I don’t see any steps they’re taking to ensure that they’re really going to do it.”
After meeting with The Post, Garson left the esplanade and cycled on the shared roadway on York Avenue — where she said she was nearly hit by a car.
HSS told The Post that the new timeline will see the esplanade reopen in phases, with the pedestrian ramp expected to reopen toward the end of this year.
Restoration along the stretch between East 70th to 73rd streets will begin in August and will be completed by March.
There is no word on when the remaining pathway will reopen, with HSS blaming the uncertainties of the project on the sinkhole remediation.
“We hear the frustration and share the desire to restore this vital green space. The Esplanade is a treasured public resource, and we are proud to be investing in its long-term future. We thank our neighbors for their patience and advocacy, and we look forward to celebrating the reopening together,” Christina Holsten, HSS’s vice president of communications, told The Post.
“Additionally, we are paying a fee as a result of the delay, so far in excess of $400k, to fund additional improvements on the Esplanade. To date, we have funded lighting for the Andrew Haskell Green Park and aim to work with Parks and the city to identify additional projects to improve our local area for the remaining closure period.”