The Wave: Local leaders and NYC Parks cut the ribbon at Arverne East Nature Preserve

It was a celebratory day on Beach 44th Street in Edgemere on Wednesday, April 24, as the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation (NYC Parks) joined with elected officials, developers, and other city agencies to officially open the peninsula’s new Arverne East Nature Preserve with a ribbon cutting ceremony.

Spanning 35 acres, the new Arverne East Nature Preserve protects and maintains five distinct, seaside ecosystems with the help of local volunteers and students while also offering locals an up-close yet safely distanced look at locally sensitive plants, like beach sedge, or endangered shorebirds, like the piping plover, with pedestrian pathways integrated throughout the area.

The new space also includes a plant nursery operated by Rockaway Initiative for Sustainability and Equity (RISE) to cultivate the local plants and support their regeneration, as well as an urban farm overseen by The Campaign Against Hunger that allows fresh produce to be grown right on the peninsula.

“These new resources for the Rockaway community are a testament to this administration’s commitment to investing in a green, liveable city,” NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue said. “By providing safe and accessible public spaces for New Yorkers to take in the fresh air and connect with nature, we at the [NYC] Parks Department are making our city stronger, more resilient, and more liveable,” she continued. “This nature preserve and welcome center offers something for everyone.”

NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue. Photo by John Schilling

The new nature preserve area is just one feature of the Arverne East development project site, which exists between Beach 32nd Street and Beach 56th Place.

Developed by L + M Development Partners LLC, the Bluestone Organization, and Triangle Equities, the project includes over 1650 units of housing with approximately 1320 units designated as “affordable housing” for formerly homeless, low, moderate, and middle-income households, as well as rental and homeownership opportunities for all.

Upon completion, the area will also include commercial and retail space, a brewery and tap house, community facility space, and a boutique hotel.

L to R: Khaleel Anderson, Adolfo Carrión Jr., Sue Donoghue, Eric Peterson, Sara Levenson, and Donovan Richards. Photo by John Schilling

During the ceremony, New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Adolfo Carrión Jr. praised the project, recalling the empty space that existed in the area prior to construction.

“[In] creating this platform, after decades of abandonment and disregard, and missed opportunity for generations, it was not what it is today,” Carrión said. “This future generation that will live in the 1600-some-odd units of affordable housing here on this beautiful piece of land, they will enjoy the benefits of this generation’s leadership and investments under this administration.”

HPD Commissioner Adolfo Carrión Jr. Photo by John Schilling

While the affordable housing portion of the project has yet to come to fruition, the site has already seen the opening of the Arverne East Welcome Center, a new multi-purpose, community meeting space located right next to the nature preserve area. Powered by rooftop solar power and a closed-loop geothermal system, the new building is completely fossil-fuel free, something that is a major feature of the entire project.

Once completed, the 116-acre Arverne East development will be New York City’s first “net zero” community, as it will be powered by clean energy over fossil fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

In his remarks, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. said this project has been “40 years in the making” while echoing Carrión’s memories of the vacant, overgrown “dumping ground” that once existed due to years of neglect and disinvestment and pointing to how the new space will benefit future generations

“This is what justice looks like,” Richards said. “When I think of what this lot was and now to see what it is, I feel so much hope and excitement for future generations who will grow up here with more resources than I ever had growing up here,” he continued. “It is truly transformational.”

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. Photo by John Schilling

NYS Assemblyman Khaleel Anderson also praised the project, calling it “a once in a generation investment” and reflecting on what it means for the Edgemere community after decades of fighting for access and resources.

“This is your center,” Anderson said. “I’m looking forward to seeing this center get its full use and to see more young people…and people all across the community enjoy this beautiful space.”

NYS Assemblyman Khaleel Anderson. Photo by John Schilling

Following Anderson, NYC Councilwoman Selvena Brooks-Powers shared that watching the construction of the new nature preserve and welcome center has been her “favorite part” of the project so far, recalling how she would send progress pictures to Richards each time she would pass by the area.

“It was just beautiful to see the evolution of this space and what it has become,” Brooks-Powers said. “At nightime, if you walk by or if you drive by, it [lights] up this area that was once just vacant, and as a Rockaway resident, it is such a sight to see.”

NYC Councilwoman Selvena Brooks-Powers. Photo by John Schilling

CB14 District Manager Felicia Johnson. Photo by John Schilling

Remembering the past while also looking to the future remained a constant theme throughout the ceremony, as Community Board 14 District Manager Felicia Johnson and recently retired Community Board 14 District Manager Jonathan Gaska both spoke of Rockaway’s progress over the last two decades.

“This was the scariest area to drive through,” Johnson said. “There was nothing here but woods…but to see what this has been transformed into is beyond beyond.”

“To see Rockaway now from what it was four decades ago when I started here, it’s just unbelievable,” Gaska added. “Rockaway residents were tenacious, [and] they can now be proud of this community and what it’s turned into.”

In closing remarks, L + M Development Partners LLC Managing Director Sara Levenson also discussed Rockaway’s ongoing transformation, crediting the public-private partnerships that made it possible.

“When you take a step back and look at how far this team has come, what we’ve accomplished to date and what we’re collectively working towards, it’s humbling,” Levenson said. “We are doing something that is bigger than ourselves and this generation. Through our collective efforts, we’re ensuring that we are leaving this site, this community, and the city better than we found it,” she continued. “This is just the beginning. We are just getting started.”