Port Morris Waterfront Facelift Begins
Mott Haven Herald
By Samali Bikangaga
For decades, residents of Port Morris have been cut off from the East River and the Harlem River, both of which run through their neighborhood. But now, the waterfront area with a total population of just over 3,000, tucked away between major highways, waste treatment facilities, power plants, trucking depots and rusted gantries, is undergoing big changes that will help grant them recreational access to those rivers.
On July 8, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark Viverito and Councilman Rafael Salamanca Jr. held a press conference on the waterfront to announce that the city will allocate $2 million to rehab the East 132nd street pier.
“Due to years of socioeconomic inequality and years of disinvestment, this pier has been underutilized, inaccessible, and gone to waste,” said Mark-Viverito.
The New York Restoration Group partnered with South Bronx Unite, HealthxDesign, Healthfirst, Montefiore Medical Center, BronxWorks and other local groups, to launch The Haven Project last November, to create open space along the waterfront.
