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By Jason M. Barr
Mr. Barr is the author of “Building the Skyline: The Birth and Growth of Manhattan’s Skyscrapers.”
On Jan. 1, 2022, Eric Adams was sworn in as New York’s 110th mayor. He is now in charge of the city’s response to big, and growing, problems. One is a housing affordability crisis. Another concerns the ravages of climate change: sea level rise, flooding and storm surges.
There is a way to help tackle both issues in one bold policy stroke: expand Manhattan Island into the harbor.
Last September, after witnessing unprecedented flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Ida, Mr. Adams said that it was “a real wake-up call to all of us how we must understand how this climate change is impacting us.” This realization should spur him to pursue aggressive measures to mitigate climate change’s devastation.
Both Mayors Bill de Blasio and Michael Bloomberg offered climate-change plans that included extending the shoreline along the East River in Lower Manhattan. But these proposals, while admirable, would be small steps and would hardly make a dent with problems of such big scale.
This new proposal offers significant protection against surges while also creating new housing. To do this, it extends Manhattan into New York Harbor by 1,760 acres. This landfill development, like many others in the city’s past, would reshape the southern Manhattan shoreline. We can call the created area New Mannahatta (referring to the name the Lenape gave to Manhattan).
Room for Almost 250,000 More New Yorkers
One idea for more housing, parks and storm resilience: “New Mannahatta.”
Hudson R.
N.J.
Manhattan
CANAL ST.
Wetlands
Bike and
pedestrian
paths
Manhattan Br.
1
East R.
Brooklyn Br.
South
Ferry
station
Governors
Island
1
Subway
extension
Brooklyn
New stations
Carroll St. Sta.
G
RED HOOK
Subway rerouting
and extension
Upper
New York
Harbor
Comparing Old and
New Neighborhoods
NEW JERSEY
Upper
West
Side
UPPER
WEST SIDE
“NEW
MANNAHATTA”
POPULATION
Hudson
River
179,682
247,455
TOTAL AREA
1,220 acres
1.9 sq. mi.
1,760 acres
2.75 sq. mi.
MANHATTAN
PARKS
300 acres
241 acres
East
River
WETLANDS
0
250 acres
DENSITY
195 people
/acre (excl.
park areas)
195
BROOKLYN
Manhattan
extension
HOUSING UNITS
129,431
178,282
Hudson
River
N.J.
Manhattan
CANAL ST.
Wetlands
Pedestrian
and bike paths
Manhattan Br.
1
East River
Brooklyn Br.
South Ferry
station
Ferry
piers
Governors Island
(175 acres)
G
1
Brooklyn
Subway
extension
New stations
Carroll St. Station
Main square
(35 acres)
G
Subway rerouting
and extension
RED HOOK
NEW JERSEY
Upper
New York
Harbor
Upper West Side
Comparing Old and New Neighborhoods
Hudson
River
Upper West Side
“New Mannahatta”
QUEENS
MANHATTAN
179,682
247,455
POPULATION
East
River
1,220 acres
1.9 sq. miles
1,760 acres
2.75 sq. miles
TOTAL AREA
300 acres
241 acres
PARKS
BROOKLYN
0
250 acres
WETLANDS
195 people/acre
(excl. park areas)
195
“New
Mannahatta”
DENSITY
129,431
178,282
HOUSING UNITS
By The New York Times | New Mannahatta Plan conceived of by Jason M. Barr.
A neighborhood of that size is bigger than the Upper West Side (Community District 7), which comprises 1,220 acres. Imagine replicating from scratch a diverse neighborhood that contains housing in all shapes and sizes, from traditional brownstones to five-story apartment buildings to high-rise towers. If New Mannahatta is built with a density and style similar to the Upper West Side’s, it could have nearly 180,000 new housing units.
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