Dumbo NYC

125 years ago, at 2pm on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge officially opened. New York City is celebrating the bridge’s birthday with a week of events. With Dumbo situated at the foot of the bridge, the Dumbo Improvement District, with support from the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs and NYC Department Of Transportation organized and unveiled a permanent public art project and upgrade to the Brooklyn Bridge pedestrian walkway at Washington and Prospect Streets today at 2pm. The permanent installation features fiber optic and LED lighting and art (consistent with their environmental efforts), a map and signage under the bridge, and metal signs and directional compass on the sidewalks.

Dumbo Improvement District Executive Director Tucker Reed, NYC Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, and Lisa Kim, Director, Percent for Art Program were in Dumbo to unveil these walkway improvements. Marty Markowitz said, “With these beautiful new signs and lights, visitors will have an easier time locating the Bridge’s pedestrian walkway and breathtaking views, as well as the wonders of Dumbo, the epicenter of ‘hip’ in Brooklyn.” As many Dumbo residents can attest, visitors and tourists to the area used to be confused about where to go for the Bridge, or directions to the park, Brooklyn Heights, or a neighboring community. Not only will these signs help guide them back to Brooklyn Bridge or Manhattan, but also liven up the previously dark underpass with unique and interesting lighting.

Coinciding with the public art lighting, the 2008 celebration will kick off with a public birthday party on Thursday, May 22nd at the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park DUMBO, featuring live music by the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Grucci fireworks, and the unveiling of special bridge lighting that will illuminate the bridge from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. through Memorial Day. (More at nyc.gov)

The signage and public art lighting installation was created by Emphasis Design, Tillet Lighting Design and KT3D, and is entitled “This Way.”

{Dumbo Improvement District 2007 Initiatives, 04Mar2007}
{Brooklyn Bridge Lighting Flickr Set}

Discuss DOCK STREET and the DUMBO REZONING PLAN with PAUL GRAZIANO

When: Sunday, May 18th, 6:30 - 8:30pm
Where: 70 Washington St. PH-E, DUMBO, Brooklyn
Cost: $75 per person donation, including wine and hors d’oeuvres

The Dumbo Neighborhood Association invites you to spend and evening with Paul Graziano, noted historic preservationist and the urban planner behind DNA’s rezoning plan for DUMBO.

Space is limited, please RSVP to: karen@dumbo-dna.org. To pay in advance, mail checks payable to “DNA” to: DNA, 45 Washington St., P.O.Box 123, Brooklyn, NY 11201

As part of the Brooklyn Bridge 125th anniversary party, the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership has recently been working with Artichoke, a British company that puts on extraordinary events in public spaces to bring a public art event to Brooklyn. In 2006, Artichoke mounted The Sultan’s Elephant, the largest piece of free theater ever seen in London, which closed the streets to traffic and attracted an audience thought to be over a million people strong over four days.

Artichoke’s latest project – slated to premier simultaneously in Brooklyn and London – is inspired by Victorian dreamers: people who imagined the impossible, from suspension bridges to metal steamships, from canals through the countryside to viaducts through mountain ranges. Artichoke is now collaborating with the artist Paul St George to create a pair of telectroscopes that will be open to the public here and in London, providing an extraordinary window across the world.

Event:Telectroscope: The London-Brooklyn Connection
Artist: Paul St. George, presented by Artichoke with the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership
Dates: May 22 – June 20, 2008
Location: Fulton Ferry Landing, Old Fulton Street, Brooklyn. Near the Brooklyn Bridge.
Contact: Katie Dixon, 718-403-1600, www.telectroscope.net

Workers have started building a 110 foot high steel scaffolding for one of Olafur Eliasson’s “Waterfalls,” which is expected to start pumping river water (using green energy). One waterfall will be placed under the Brooklyn Bridge for three months beginning in mid-July.

(Images courtesy of 801a.info)

{Art will gush over East River, 03Apr2008, Metro}
{What is that? Art?, 02Apr2008, 801a.info}
{Waterfall Art Installation Under the Brooklyn Bridge This Summer, 27Jan2008}
{newyorkcitywaterfalls.com}

Between mid-July and mid-October, four waterfalls will be erected in the East River in a public art project by Danish artist Olafur Eliasson that will reportedly create $55 million in extra tourism revenue for the city. One of the waterfalls will be under the Brooklyn Bridge. We should have a good view from the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park and Brooklyn Bridge Park from Dumbo.

[+larger] (Artist rendering: Olafur Eliasson- Courtesy Public Art Fund/Handout/Reuters)

{ Artist to build four giant waterfalls in New York, Reuters}

 (Photo: DumboNYC)

A NY Times article on Sunday by C.J. Hughes gave mention to Dumbo’s J Condo at 100 Jay Street. C.J. Hughes writes about the increase of E Zones in NYC. “In 2007, 16 E zones were created, involving hundreds of blocks, versus four zones in 1996.” E zoning designation, typically means that it abuts a busy nonresidential area and that developers must take extra noise-abatement steps. Both J Condo and Beacon Tower are new condo developments in Dumbo that abuts the Manhattan Bridge on opposite sides. J Condo hired soundproofing consultants, Architectural Testing to minimize the bridge noise. Beacon Tower at 85 Adams Street hired Shen Milsom Wilke, a New York-based acoustical design firm, to evaluate and measure the site noise. Their windows feature heavy panes of laminated glass separated by eight inches of air space and rubber gaskets, to dramatically reduce the sound levels. According to Shen Milsom Wilke, it was found that sound levels intermittently peaked at 96 dBA due predominantly to the train passing by every few minutes at the 5th floor level.

With the proximity to the Manhattan Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, and the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, most of Dumbo is noisy, and many existing buildings have been around before zoning required extra noise-abatement steps. If you don’t live in one of the two new high-rises, you still have options for a quiet night at home or at your business. Two companies that soundproof windows in the Dumbo area are Cityproof and Citiquiet. I’ve spoken to several residents of Dumbo who have hired both to install soundproofing windows. In most cases, window frames that match the existing windows are installed in the framing or behind the exterior window, leaving alternating layers of air and thick glass. Ordering custom windows typically take 6-10 weeks for delivery, but installation takes a few hours. (Photo of installed soundproofing window above). Based on personal experience and talking with residents of J Condo, Beacon Tower and residents who soundproofed other older apartments, the windows make a huge difference. Walking into one of these apartments make one forget that there are any cars or subways outside of these apartments. One side effect of soundproofing — you notice more of your interior noise such as a noisy refrigerator and central fan while exterior street noise is kept out.

Cityproof
(718) 786-1600, Christopher Ulrich
www.cityproof.com

Citiquiet
(212) 874-5362, Marc Cohen
www.citiquiet.com

{Louder Life, Thicker Windows, 02Dec2007, NYTimes}

The tragic bridge collapse accident in Minnesota is bringing attention to other bridges across the nation. In NYC, Gov. Eliot Spitzer Thursday ordered stepped-up inspections of 49 similar bridges in the state. “Eight of them are in New York City — the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, Queensboro Bridge, Marine Parkway Bridge, 145th Street Bridge, West 207th Street Bridge and bridges on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and Major Deegan Expressway.” The city and state transportation authorities are dismissing the possibility of a similar tragedy in NYC. From Newsday.com:

“If we think a bridge is ready to collapse we close it and you can’t use it,” said Carol Breen, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation. “We have experts — we pay them to worry about our bridges.
….
the 124-year-old Brooklyn Bridge and two pedestrian spans — are rated poor by the state and city. The Brooklyn Bridge’s rating stems from problems with some joints and the deck of ramps leading to the span, according to Lori Ardito, a first deputy commissioner for the city Department of Transportation.

I hope they’re worrying much more, since “it’s too hard to monitor all those bridges with greater frequency.” A National Historic Landmark, the Brooklyn Bridge carries about 132,000 vehicles a day, and many more pedestrian commuters and tourists each day.

{In Ways Large and Small, Many Bridges Meet Definition of ‘Deficient’, NYTimes}
{Safety woes span NY bridges, Newsday.com}

You may have seen these cherries around Dumbo. They’re from the One Night of Fire performance/party this past Saturday, that began at the Brooklyn Bridge and ended up at Coney Island.

 One Night of Fire at Brooklyn Bridge (Photo by Vegan Toast)

“This Saturday you are invited to participate in a grand adventure of guerrilla art and renegade performance. Dozens of creators and performers have come together to build the experience we dream of: one night of fire and decadence - one night of risk and grandeur parading through the streets, subways and waterfronts of the city we love.

One Night of Fire : The Return of the Renegade Parade We meet at 7:57pm Sharp! In the middle of the Brooklyn Bridge pedestrian walkway.”

Did anyone attend? How was it? From the photos, it looked like a crazy time.

{Flickr pool}
{thedanger.com}

 Photo courtesy of yoyolabellut

 Photo courtesy of jcipriano

Dumbo is known for its street art, installations, and galleries. But not everyone knows that Space Invader has visited Dumbo (he lives in Paris) and has at least two street installations in the near vicinity. Space Invader is not a conventional graffiti artist. He’s been creating high quality mosaic tiles of video game icons, mostly Toshiro Nishikado’s Space Invader (1978) since 1998. But the tiles are hidden around the world, often in places with famous views. He’s invaded several areas in NYC, including Dumbo, Williamsburg, and SoHo. According to a LA Weekly article, 80 to 90 percent of his outdoor pieces are still intact.:

“He has been arrested many times, but skirts trouble for the most part by playing it cool. His philosophy is that he’s “leaving a gift to the city,” and who’s to say he’s not? Each piece is as meticulously recorded and planned as it is created…”

There’s no doubt that he’s planning several more New York invasions in the near future (according to his newsletters), but he won’t say when or where it will happen. He wants people to discover them and send in photos or post them on the flickr pool. Some of them have been posted on his website. He’s made space invader so popular that there are even space invader baby t-shirts. On my trips to Tokyo and Paris this year, I’ve found one or two space invaders by chance. Have you seen any others in NYC?

  Taken on 4/29/07, Photo by DumboNYC (Click for larger version)

  Brooklyn Bridge Space Invaders, Photo courtesy of insky
  (Click for larger version)

{Invader (artist), Wikipedia}
{www.space-invaders.com, SI’s official website}
{Flickr Pool of Space-Invaders}
{Invader - Biography, LAZinc.com}
{Outsideleft article, 6/9/05}

 (Click for larger version)

Although an email tip received yesterday did not cite any specific sources, they mentioned that it came from ‘a credible source’. Thus, it is rumored that:

“David Walentas of Two Trees is renewing his efforts to get city approval for a 15-20 story building next to the Brooklyn Bridge on the current site of St. Ann’s Warehouse and Nova Clutch. The proposed plan calls for a rental building of 400 Studio and 1BD units with 450 parking spaces and 14,000sf of retail space.

His prior attempt to build a tall building on this site in 2004 failed due to opposition from community residents.

This proposed prominent building would obscure the panoramic Brooklyn Bridge views from 70 Washington, 30 Main, and 1 Main, for which residents paid millions in premium prices to Walentas.”

Neighborhood residents concerned about this and other neighborhood development can attend a public informational meeting with the New York Landmarks Preservation Commission tomorrow regarding the proposed landmarking of DUMBO. From the NY Times article on the 38 Water Street site, Councilman David Yassky agreed that instead of a 15 story building, an “eight-story building that would not rise above the Brooklyn Bridge would be a terrific use of that site”. Would you agree?