Park Buildings
The Park and Public Space Master Plan includes conceptual-level designs for three buildings to serve visitors and their needs for rest, refreshment, and information: Soissons Ferry Pavilion, the Shell at Liberty Terrace, and the Cube at Yankee Landing.
Governors Island has 52 existing landmark buildings as well as development zones in the southern portion of the Island where new buildings may be constructed. These buildings may include a mix of such private and public uses as cultural institutions, educational institutions, retail and restaurants, hospitality, or entertainment that would be available for visitors to the Island’s park and public space. This Master Plan does not address the uses for these existing or new buildings or amenities for future tenants.
Every place within the park and public spaces is within an easy 10 minute walk or few minute bicycle ride of one of the three park visitor buildings. The plan also includes park maintenance facilities, including a main facility plus several secondary storage facilities. The program needs, quantities and sizes for all of the park buildings has been determined by the team, working with ETM Associates, and is based on projected visitation and comparison with other visitor and maintenance facilities in public parks. The park and public space budget includes construction costs for all of these structures.
In addition to the concession area just west of Soissons Landing, the plan suggests other sites for future concessions which could be kiosks or carts widening the selection of food and amenities for Island visitors.
SOISSONS FERRY PAVILION
The Soissons Ferry Pavilion provides an indoor ferry waiting area, restrooms, concession and continued home for the National Park Service bookstore. The adaptive reuse of 6,000 square feet of the building, previously known as Building 140, restores its entrance to the north side and provides the opportunity for a welcoming patio at the building’s front. The south side of the building fronts on the Great Promenade, widened at this point to accommodate a free bicycle station and bicycle racks.
THE SHELL
Visitors at the upper level of the western Promenade look out over Liberty Terrace and enjoy spectacular views of the Statue of Liberty. Walking down steps cut through an opening in the Great Promenade, visitors enter the Shell, an enveloping, sculpted environment “eroded” from the earth between the Great Promenade’s upper and lower levels. The hollow structure is sheltered against the elements providing a destination for year-round access to framed views of the Statue of Liberty and New York Harbor.
The Shell, designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, is reminiscent of the interior of an oyster shell that was shaped by its aquatic environment over time to form continuous but variegated surfaces.
Floor, walls and ceiling of the space might be covered in pearlescent tiling, with surfaces sculpted into a variety of soft shapes. Integral seats, love seats, lounge chairs, and tabletops form an alluring and otherworldly landscape for sitting, reclining and dining. The Shell contains approximately 2,200 feet of sheltered space with a seating area, a food concession, restrooms and storage. Tables and chairs on Liberty Terrace also invite visitors to relax and dine outside.
Sheltered from the rain and wind, the Shell offers a warm embrace in the winter with geothermal heating of the interior surfaces through embedded radiant piping. For the hotter summer months, cold water stored throughout the winter cools the surrounding surfaces acclimatizing the Shell as a year-round destination for comfortable resting, meeting and socializing. Spectators from the Play Lawn, couples enjoying the sunset and children running through Liberty Terrace fountains all enjoy the amenities, shelter and unique form of the Shell.
YANKEE LANDING
Yankee Landing, located on the Island’s eastern Promenade overlooking the Buttermilk Channel, is a primary arrival point for pedestrians and bicyclists arriving from Brooklyn and other locations in the Harbor. Park and public space users, tenants and Island visitors may all disembark from ferries and water taxis at Yankee Pier.
Two new structures designed by Rogers Marvel Architects welcome these visitors. The first of these is a ferry shelter which provides a distinctive sense of arrival. This open canopy offers sheltered space for queues and ferry passenger seating which will be particularly appreciated during inclement weather, and is situated so it does not interrupt circulation on the Great Promenade. As boat passengers disembark at Yankee Landing, the Great Promenade widens to a generous mosaic-paved plaza that leads visitors to Liggett Terrace and provides an easy way to traverse the Island from east to west.
At Yankee Landing, visitors can stop by the Cube which provides information and amenities. Just outside are racks to pick up a free Governors Island Bicycle or to park personal bicycles. The Cube may also serve as a stop on the Island’s internal tram circulation program that will serve both park and building visitors.
The 2,100-square-foot Cube houses visitor information, a concession, a rest area and rest rooms. The cantilevered, open-air structure with overhead display panels, also delivers information projected about programming, boat schedules and other vital information. The open sides accommodate crowds but also provide a place to stop for a small group, making this an ideal meeting spot. In future stages of design, the form and materials of the Cube will be developed and refined in relationship to the character of the surrounding Historic District.
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The Way It Works —
“The Way it Works” explains how the elements of the park and public space function. While the design is at the master plan stage, considerable work underlies the plan to ensure a strong foundation for future implementation. The West 8…
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Program —
The program brief for the park and public space is based on a number of key principles:
• To provide unique experiences that capitalize on the attributes of the Island and its harbor location
• To create a destination that… -
Topography —
A landscape architect’s most transformative space-making tool is grading. Grading is used functionally to channel run-off and provide adequate drainage. Beyond the purely functional, however, grading creates heaving bulges and recesses, small dips and peaks, and swaths of smooth, flat…
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Views —
Parks are more pleasurable and more memorable if they have a rich layering of spatial qualities. The new topography at the southern portion of Governors Island cultivates the views of the Harbor. The park and public spaces will be designed…
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Circulation —
Clear, organized circulation is essential to the legibility of the park and public spaces and to the safety of users. A network of pathways and roads serves pedestrians, bicyclists, and service vehicles, with a hierarchy of path uses and path…
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Paving —
There is a conscious effort to correlate paving treatments and expression to the character of different park and public space areas and experiences. The horizontal plane underfoot (or under bicycle tires) contributes significantly to the experience.
Stretches of path and… -
Edging —
Edging is another key element of the Park and Public Space Master Plan. Edging surrounds and defines the perimeters of lawn and planted areas and the “pillow-shaped” topography. Edging serves multiple functions: clarifying paths, guiding bicyclists, and retaining grade. Its…
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Furnishings —
Seating, lighting and other furnishings are critical to the visitor’s experience of any public space or park. An array of well-designed and well-located furnishings makes for a comfortable and inviting experience. Furnishings help establish character and feel. They also must…
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Planting —
The Historic District’s protected conditions, higher elevations and quality top soils make for ideal conditions to grow large, beautiful shade trees and support other plantings. On the southern half of the Island, poor quality soil, exposure to harsh salty winds,…
Comments (12)
Comments —
I hope what ever design evolves from the experts, I hope in the end it will be a Park and not another recreational area with bicyclist and their hippodrome races or another group of baseball and soccer fields or entertainment stages. A real park experience of relaxation and contemplation and human exchange of greetings. No animals including pets, no hobbyist and model planes and cars. A human park and natural surroundings.
By word of mouse on April 13, 2010 4:35 pmI think this a great thing.
By sonny ireland on April 30, 2010 9:30 pmI was there with my family during Holand week,what a fantastic experance.Free bikes,free ferrys,we never knew
about Governors Island,the biking and the incredible views from everywhere. Now its going to be over the top.
sonny ireland,Atlantic City.
What are “development zones”? And why is there not a single word about them on this website?
By bob on June 1, 2010 6:07 amHi Bob,
Development zones are 33 acres of space set aside on the island’s southern portion for new construction. These areas are not a part of West 8’s Park and Public Space Master Plan, but you can read more about them, and the Island’s future development, here: http://www.govislandpark.com/about-governors-island.
By admin on June 2, 2010 5:04 amInclude a subway stop at Govenors Island. Appears the Brooklyn Battery tunnel runs close to the Island.
By David on June 2, 2010 5:51 amCan’t wait till we see it. It sounds wonderful. My husband worked on Governor’s Island for the Coast Guard and thought it was beautiful back then. What a wonderful addition to NYC
By j carapazza on June 13, 2010 11:46 amI sail. How about getting this island connected to the harbor by building/expanding docks with slips where small craft can moor for day trips ?
By Rick van Valkenburg on September 7, 2010 1:57 pmMy wife and I first saw Governors Island when we came over from our home in Scotland for the fifth anniversary of 9/11. We both were surprised to see such a lovely wee island with lots of beautiful buildings not being used very much. However,the thought of all this work being done to the Island, for me is a step too far. Governors Islands beauty is its history and its significance to Americas history.To turn genuine historic buildings into cafes, restaurants and theatres is daft. Especially as you New Yorkers have a wee area called Broadway in the middle of your city.You also have Central Park. So it’s not like you need new parks. Governors Island is also a place New Yorkers can get away from it all. Whether on a lunch break or just to be away from the city for a wee while and you will not get that if it’s turned into a Mini Manhattan. Come on New York, keep Governors Island exactly what it is,a place of not only your history but your countries history. My wife nad I shall be back in your wondeful city in December of 2012 to spend a month there for my 40th birthday and hope it looks the way it did in 2006.
By Jonny Campbell, Dundee. on October 7, 2010 5:57 amwhat about a light rail tunnel connecting lower manhattan with governors island and continuing on to the old navy base on staten island for commuting?If you followed that with useing the rail already in place you could bring this train to snug harbor cultural centre and over to make connections for new jersey commuters to ease traffic in our city.If you made this a maglev train and built windmills along the water and west shore xpressway you could power it and help the grid.Maybe the feds would see this as a job creator and an interstate commuter project and fund it.If a tunnel to jersey was added all the better for a successful attempt.A green project with a long term useful end and lots of good jobs.What do you think?
By mark w lane on February 17, 2011 11:10 amReally agree with you comments here. I am uncertain if I would do it though
By football tips on August 3, 2011 11:27 amI agree with Jonny Cambell! and disagree with those who would add an interstate!! It should be kept as a historical place with the added plus of a place of relaxation. Keep the commercialization, cars, noise & animals out.
By J. Costello on October 30, 2011 3:24 amhi http://www.govislandpark.com-ers happy christmas to all of you – matt-mays
By mattymays on December 22, 2011 5:13 amComments —
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