| Message from the Chairman
This newsletter reports on a few of the
important projects on which the Riverdale Nature Preservancy
is working. We are also working closely with Community
Board 8 on the 197-a Plan, which will shape the future
of our community. The Plan provides for development
while preserving the character we have fought so hard
to maintain. We are also working with other groups in
the Bronx to preserve and improve the greenery which
exists within and the rivers which surround our Borough.
In addition to the Hudson, the Harlem and Bronx Rivers
need to be cleaned up so they can provide our residents
with river access and enjoyment. There is a lot to do.
Working together we can do it.
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| Don Cohn |
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Movement to Restore the Park in
the Henry Hudson Parkway
The parkway that cuts through Riverdale hardly resembles a scenic
park road. Yet, when it was designed and built in the 1930s, the-Henry
Hudson Parkway was one of the finest examples of the American Parkway
Movement, a movement which is regarded by many as this country's most
important contribution to global landscape architecture. The parkway
was masterminded by Robert Moses as a gateway to the city, carrying
the visitor through a panorama of the city's most dramatic landscapes
and monuments, through its premiere neighborhoods and into the heart
of Manhattan. For the residents of the city, it was a ribbon of parks,
(continued on page 2) |
Riverdale's
Roots
This is the second in a series of articles on
the history of preservation in Riverdale, as told by long-time resident
and community activist Gil Kerlin. The first article in this series
recounted how the area's earliest developments preserved the natural
beauty of the Riverdale Ridge through embrace of the design principles
of the "romantic suburb" movement. This article describes
how the community addressed explosive growth in Riverdale under
the City's earliest zoning regulations.
New York City's first zoning regulations, adopted in 1916, were
intended to stabilize real estate values by encouraging development
in line with existing development.
Unfortunately, especially in the outer boroughs, there was often
a wide gap between the type of development planners intended and
what could legally be built. For example, the E zoning district,
which was widely mapped in Riverdale, was intended to encourage
detached and semi-detached single-family houses.
However, by simply leaving more open space than was typical, a builder
could erect a multi-story apartment building instead.
Not surprisingly, protests abounded. Over the years hundreds of
changes were made to the zoning yet, overall, it remained exceedingly
permissive. A 1950 report, "Plan for Rezoning the
(continued on page 3)
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Annual
Membership Meeting Held in October
The Riverdale Nature Preservancy held its 2002 annual meeting at Wave Hill on October 22"d.
The nearly two-hour meeting included updates on the Preservancy's
priority projects, remarks from NYS Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz
and NYC Councilman Oliver Koppell, and time for attendees to connect
with each other and Preservancy Board members.
Chairman Donald Cohn emphasized the
Preservancy's history of working with other community groups for
a broad-based approach to matters of common concern. Ongoing efforts
that the Preservancy will continue to support include Community
Board 8's 197-a Plan; preserving open space on Chapel Farm, the
Bronx River shoreline, the Old Putnam Rail Line, and the Harlem
River Waterfront; and the Henry Hudson Parkway Scenic Byway designation.
Treasurer Sandy Shalleck reported
that the Preservancy is in good financial condition and that copies
of the Preservancy's Annual Reports for 2000 and 2001 were available
at the meeting. She announced the receipt of a grant from the J.M.
Kaplan Fund for the production of educational materials and a donation
of research related to stormwater management from the Gaia Institute.
( continued on page 4)
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