On Monday, Manhattan debuted its first public beach, adding 5.5 new acres of open space to the city’s network of public parks. Located at Little West 12th Street and 13th Avenue at Hudson River Park in the Meatpacking District, Gansevoort Peninsula features a sandy shoreline with beach chairs and umbrellas; picnic tables, a rocky seating edge, sports fields, a salt marsh with native plantings, and access to the Hudson River for non-motorized boats and stunning views. The one caveat: you can’t actually go swimming in the water.
For the $73 million project’s design, Hudson River Park Trust tapped Field Operations, who designed the High Line and Domino Park. The southern end of the park also features a monumental, site-specific sculpture by David Hammons called Day’s End that was donated to the Park by the Whitney Museum of American Art in 2021. On the north side is a salt marsh with submerged reef balls and oyster gabions seeded with 20 million juvenile oysters to provide valuable habitat and improve resiliency.
“This collaboration between New York City and State will benefit everyone who visits here on the shore of the Hudson, and it checks a lot of boxes from climate change mitigation to competition on the ball fields, from a stroll with your pup to sitting on the beach,” said New York State Governor Kathy Hochul.
The park also includes a sunning lawn, fitness equipment for adults, boardwalks, and a promenade with stunning views.
