Like Bryant Park in midtown, the new Pier 17 will offer a reprieve from the density and bustle of Lower Manhattan. The center of activity will be the pier’s waterfront plazas—designed in part to address Lower Manhattan’s shortage of outdoor spaces for families and children.

GGP’s plan more than doubles the pier’s existing open space, opening harbor views and creating the “jewel in the crown” of the city’s East River Esplanade project. Underway since 2005, the Esplanade adds an estimated one million square feet of useable open space to Lower Manhattan’s waterfront. Designs by SHoP Architects and Field Operations will unite the pier’s new open space with the city’s grand vision.

The collaborative plan will convert the FDR overpass area—now covered in shadow—into a bright promenade for strolling, biking, and shopping in new South Street pavilions. Pathways and plazas let people meander through and around the pavilions and new pier buildings, inviting visitors out to enjoy the view from the river’s edge.

Aesthetically, the additional open space on the pier and along the Esplanade will soften the barrier created by the FDR, better linking the pier with the historic cobblestone district and serving as a gateway to the waterfront. To enhance the east-west connection, GGP plans to extend the downtown street grid onto the pier, creating pedestrian-only lanes between new, freestanding retail buildings that will further serve to blend in with the city around it.

Five total acres of open space will make the pier a place where East River Esplanade runners can stop for a rest, friends can meet for coffee at an outdoor café, musicians can give impromptu performances, and residents can linger with a book by the river. All of this and more will take place against the magnificent backdrop of the Brooklyn Bridge and New York Harbor.