Splashy Pier 55 Project for the Hudson River Gains Final Approval

"The site of the future 2.7-acre Hudson River park funded by Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg has cleared its final regulatory hurdle," reports Joe Anuta via information shared by the Hudson River Park Trust earlier this week. "Construction of Pier55, as the park-on-a-pier will be known, is now expected to begin this summer…"

"The project is being built through a partnership between the trust and a nonprofit created by Diller and von Furstenburg, who have contributed $113 million to fund most of the park’s construction," adds Anuta.

The project has moved swiftly since its November 2014 reveal, and after sparking no amount of controversy about park funding in wealthy neighborhoods. Architecture critic Inga Saffron and architect Carol Berens are among those who questioned the project's meaning for social equity in park space.