Menin, East Harlem Leaders Demand More Funding For Crumbling Esplanade

EAST HARLEM, NY — City Council Speaker Julie Menin joined East Harlem advocates and elected officials in calling for more city, state and federal funding to rebuild deteriorating sections of the East River Esplanade, where community groups have warned for years about unsafe conditions and gaps in the city's plans.

The latest push centers on a 10-block stretch of Bobby Wagner Walk between East 107th and East 117th streets that remains without funding for a comprehensive reconstruction, according to Menin's office.

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Advocates are also seeking money to restore improvements previously planned between East 94th and East 105th streets. That section is now expected to receive more limited repairs after officials reduced the project's scope this summer, Menin's office said.

The New York City Economic Development Corporation's current reconstruction project covers East 94th to East 107th streets and East 117th to East 124th streets, including the long-shuttered Pier 107. That leaves the East 107th-to-East 117th Street corridor outside the main project.

The funding gap builds on concerns documented by Patch in June 2025, when CIVITAS and Friends of the East River Esplanade said the city's plans omitted a seven-block section between East 107th and East 114th streets.

At the time, advocates described crumbling barriers near the water, damaged pavement and places where the barrier separating pedestrians from the FDR Drive was missing.

A nearby section between East 114th and East 118th streets had also been blocked by fencing for years, with overgrown vegetation and broken pavement visible behind it.

"There is a whole seven-block section that is being completely ignored," CIVITAS board member and East Harlem resident Charles Devigne told Patch in 2025. "East Harlem tends to be forgotten very quickly, and this is such a great indication and example of that fact."

The new call for funding indicates that the unresolved reconstruction gap now extends farther north, through East 117th Street.

Following years of grassroots advocacy, the city committed $284 million in capital funding for East Harlem waterfront improvements in 2021, according to Menin's office. Patch reported in 2025 that the total amount earmarked for the walkway had reached about $300 million by 2023.

But during an August 2026 public meeting held by NYC Parks and NYCEDC, residents were told that the project faced a substantial funding shortfall, Menin's office said.

The shortfall led officials to reduce the scope of the project and shelve designs shaped by years of community input, according to advocates. The East 94th-to-East 105th Street section was left largely with repair work instead of the broader reconstruction previously planned.

"The East River Esplanade is a treasured resource for the communities and residents that surround it, and for decades critical promises to improve and revitalize infrastructure have been revoked and continue to go unfulfilled," Menin said.

Advocates said short-term repairs should not replace the comprehensive reconstruction envisioned for the waterfront, particularly as larger projects have moved forward elsewhere in Manhattan.

That disparity has long been central to the campaign for East Harlem's waterfront.

CIVITAS Executive Director Sharon Pope-Marshall called the state of the Esplanade an equity issue, saying East Harlem residents deserved a waterfront comparable to sections below East 96th Street.

Plans presented before the latest reductions called for new infrastructure and landscaping between East 94th and East 107th streets, along with a separated bike lane, fitness space and play equipment. Pier 107 was slated to be expanded with flexible seating and picnic areas.

Farther north, preliminary plans for East 117th to East 124th streets included new overlooks and lawn space.

Menin and the advocates are now urging New York State to consider supporting the unfinished work through the Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, alongside additional city capital funding.

The state previously committed $43 million in Bond Act money to the nearby Harlem River Greenway between East 125th and East 132nd streets. That project is intended to elevate the shoreline, improve climate resiliency and expand waterfront access.

"Bare minimum maintenance funding is no longer good enough for a community that has been consistently ignored while they watch the city continue to invest in the development of all other sections of the East River waterfront," Menin said.

For questions, email Miranda.Levingston@Patch.com.