East River Esplanade — Attraction in New York

Love the Esplanade, BUT very disappointed about the way the native plant strips have been trimmed. Having been looking at them multiple times a week for the past year, I was shocked to see how they were flattened with what seemed to be little care for their seeds and stalks. I completely understand trimming back plants that are overflowing onto the biking and walking paths, totally makes sense! But leveling native plant stalks, that were planted to help the local ecosystems and native fauna, like insects and birds, seems to defeat the purpose. Overwintering plants are important, their hollow stems create safe habitat for insects and their eggs, while I have been watching the birds delightfully eat the seeds of asters, echinacea, and goldenrod to keep themselves fed through the drought. The before image might look at little wild, but the after images don’t look any better in my opinion. I love this park and greenway, and I appreciate all those who work on it to do make it great for everyone, including the birds and bees, but hopefully we can figure out a way to keep the winter benefits of these plants while still trying to make it look tidy for those that...

Went for another walk along the new Greenway from 53rd to 71st, where it is now closed for some repair work. Today was a beautiful, sunny and cold day and there were still a few hearty souls walking and jogging. Scenery is great with views of Roosevelt Island, Queensboro Bridge, downtown NY and Brooklyn, boat traffic on the East River and the overhead Tramway. Best photo shoot area is from the 53rd end looking down river. A wonderful addition to the...

Nice to try out the new extension from E 54 st over the new bridge and ramp, with lovely views of the east river, Roosevelt island, even One world trade center in the distance. The cycle and running track is separated from the pedestrian path by landscaped beds and trees, plenty of benches to sit on to relax and take in the views. Drinking water fountain, but...