On June 25, 2007, the NYC Economic Development Corporation, in conjunction with the Department of City Planning issued a Request for Proposals seeking a consultant or consultant team to provide professional land use and transportation planning, market analysis and feasibility, and community outreach support services to complete a comprehensive study of Staten Island’s West Shore.

Building upon past successful planning efforts between the Department of City Planning and the NYC Economic Development Corporation, on June 25, 2007 the NYCEDC issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to retain a consultant to coordinate outreach efforts, collect, summarize, and analyze data, provide a forum for public discussion for weighing alternative futures, and bring together the Advisory Committee and various agencies to focus our efforts on developing a community based planning framework to guide the West Shore’s future transportation and land use needs. The deadline for submissions is July 25, 2007 with a goal of selecting a consultant later this summer. Copies of the RFP can be requested on NYC EDC's website.

The consultant will build on the preliminary research that DCP has conducted over the course of the last year. As we move forward, we will extend our outreach efforts through a series of public workshops and Advisory Committee meetings to ensure participation from multiple stakeholders, including residents, business owners, civic groups and elected officials. The study is lead jointly by the DCP and the NYCEDC with assistance from the Deputy Mayor’s Office for Economic Development and Rebuilding.

In parallel with the West Shore Study, the city has allocated funding to allow the Staten Island Economic Development Corporation (SIEDC) to further study the feasibility of light rail passenger service along the West Shore.


Background
Running the length of the Arthur Kill, Staten Island's West Shore encompasses an area of approximately 5,700 acres, mostly zoned for manufacturing. While there exists a long and varied history of industrial uses, more than half of the area has remained dormant, as vacant, dilapidated, or under-utilized properties. This is beginning to change, however, as evidenced by a spate of proposals for residential and retail development.

In response, and at the recommendation of the Mayor's Staten Island Growth Management and Transportation Task Forces, the city is undertaking a comprehensive transportation and land use study of the area. Rather than managing the impacts of piecemeal development, this study offers an opportunity to weigh alternative futures, develop a community-based vision, and establish a planning framework to guide land use and transportation decision-making in the future. The framework shall include a long-term vision and planning implementation strategy to assure thoughtful and sustainable development for this large area of private and publicly-owned property. The project will focus on opportunities to improve transportation (roads and mass transit); better utilize industrial properties along the waterfront while also protecting existing businesses; better integrate development by clustering around existing and future transit options; preserve open space; and enhance job opportunities for all skill levels. 

The study will bring together the transportation agencies needed to plan the area’s transportation infrastructure, NYC Department of Transportation, NY State Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan Transit Authority and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Community outreach and the incorporation of local needs and goals are a critical function of the framework to be developed with the assistance of a Consultant.


Study Area
The overall West Shore study area is approximately 5,700 acres, however excluding the future Fresh Kills Park, the remaining area, which will be the focus of the study, is approximately 3,000 acres.  Large portions of this area contain wetlands and other environmentally sensitive areas. 

The West Shore study area includes, from north to south, the neighborhoods of Howland Hook/Arlington, Bloomfield, Chelsea, Travis, Rossville, Woodrow, Charleston and Tottenville, as well as Fresh Kills Park. Nearly 10 square miles in size and covering approximately 12 miles of shoreline along the Arthur Kill, the Study Area consists of maritime, industrial, and commercial uses with pockets of residential use, along with open space, brownfields and wetlands, all located on some of the largest private and publicly-owned undeveloped and underutilized land in the City.

Compared to the rest of Staten Island, the West Shore has limited connectivity on inadequate local roads.  Consequently, travel times are longer and conditions are often more dangerous for both motorists and pedestrians. At the same time, pressure to develop these areas is expected to accelerate in the coming decades, as a consequence of the growth in the city and regional population and economy, the shortage of alternative development locations, and potential infrastructure investments, in particular the planned widening of Arthur Kill Road and the replacement of the Goethals Bridge with a more modern and reliable bridge link to New Jersey.  A new Goethals Bridge will make the West Shore more accessible from the New Jersey Turnpike, Newark Airport, Port Newark and Port Elizabeth, and, via a potential bus link, with NJ Transit at Elizabeth.

The West Shore is zoned primarily for manufacturing, which permits industrial and commercial uses, and has been subject to piecemeal requests for zoning changes and other discretionary actions to advance individual residential and commercial projects.

We look forward to hearing your ideas for the West Shore. Please contact us for more information.