Observations
Little Island is a two-acre elevated park in the Hudson River off the coast of Lower Manhattan. It serves New Yorkers (and tourists) as a natural oasis, community center, and distinctive landmark with exceptional views. However, it fails to honor the area’s history. Little Island was built on the land of Hudson River Park, which was once home to the Lenape tribe during the early colonization of America. The Lenape people used the land to camp, hunt, and fish. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the area became a busy port of entry, serving as a point of departure and return for trans-Atlantic ocean liner voyagers. The only artifact that remains of the land’s rich history is a steel archway, located far away from the park itself. In addition to this, it is worth noting Little Island’s “out-of-place” design as it seems to not fit in with the architecture from its surrounding area. The park has an ecologic design that includes a range of plants and wood, which juxtaposes the cold look of the skyscrapers and the industrial warehouses found in the city. However, Little Island’s location, hovering the Hudson River, allows the park to stand out on its own and become a center of attraction to the community and tourists.
Critiques
We imagine a Little Island that commemorates its industrial past and offers a natural resource to the surrounding community while continuing its presence as a successful tourist destination. In its current state, there is no representation of its rich history as a busy shipping port or key fishing and hunting area for the Lenape tribe. The elevated park feels much like an unusual amusement park built only for tourist attraction and capitalist gain. We hope to transform the diverse landscape artificially manufactured on the Hudson River to feature a community garden of crops and native plants that serves its surrounding community of people and wildlife. Doing so will allow the space’s natural features to be utilized for the people who live there, much like how the space’s proximity to the water was utilized for trans-Atlantic shipping in the 19th-20th century and for hunting and fishing many years before that. The park’s location relative to the rest of Lower Manhattan separates itself from the adjacent cityscape. We hope that by integrating its use into the fabric of the city’s social landscape, it will feel much less out of place and more intentionally situated. Because its structure and landscape will remain as a marvel of civil engineering, Little Island will continue to attract tourists and include them in the area’s vibrant community and rich history as a utilitarian mecca.
Improvements
We imagine a Little Island that commemorates its industrial past and offers a natural resource to the surrounding community while continuing its presence as a successful tourist destination. In its current state, there is no representation of its rich history as a busy shipping port or key fishing and hunting area for the Lenape tribe. The elevated park feels much like an unusual amusement park built only for tourist attraction and capitalist gain. We hope to transform the diverse landscape artificially manufactured on the Hudson River to feature a community garden of crops and native plants that serves its surrounding community of people and wildlife. Doing so will allow the space’s natural features to be utilized for the people who live there, much like how the space’s proximity to the water was utilized for trans-Atlantic shipping in the 19th-20th century and for hunting and fishing many years before that. The park’s location relative to the rest of Lower Manhattan separates itself from the adjacent cityscape. We hope that by integrating its use into the fabric of the city’s social landscape, it will feel much less out of place and more intentionally situated. Because its structure and landscape will remain as a marvel of civil engineering, Little Island will continue to attract tourists and include them in the area’s vibrant community and rich history as a utilitarian mecca.