As part of an evolving Brooklyn waterfront, the River Ring Master Plan is an extraordinary opportunity to provide a new model for urban shorelines that will enhance access and connectivity of the public waterfront, restore natural habitats, elevate the standard for urban waterfront resiliency, and transform the way New Yorkers interact with the East River with a living waterfront and ground-breaking mixed-use development. The River Ring will complete the continuous public waterfront that stretches from Domino Park to Bushwick Inlet Park, addressing a major missing link between Williamsburg and Greenpoint. By re-naturalizing the urban shoreline, the water’s edge is expanded into the city. Waterfront infrastructure and open space will feature accessible breakwaters and nature trails, beaches, marshes, wetlands, and a tidal basin that dissipate wave action from storm surges and create calmer waters for safe in-water recreation. The River Ring seeks to maximize affordable housing, minimize the burden on existing infrastructure, and employ architectural strategies responsive to site conditions and constraints. The buildings open up toward the River, maximizing open space and minimizing the building footprints to create an inviting gateway along Metropolitan. In addition to over 70,000 square feet of public-facing programs, the two mixed-income buildings will provide 1,050 total units of housing, 263 of which will be below-market rate. The orientation of the residential towers limit view obstruction from the neighborhood and expand the Metropolitan view corridor. By blending the tower and the podium, the relationship between building and park is softened to welcome the community to the water.
