Costa wants ecodock in Astoria

From DNA Info:

Astoria Councilman Costa Constantinides wants to build an "eco dock" on the East River, a site where small boats could dock and local schools could run educational programs to allow students to interact with the waterfront.

"It's time that we return to our roots and once again connect with one of our greatest local resources: the East River," the lawmaker said Thursday night during his State of the District address.

"This simple project will offer Astorians from all walks of life a chance to reacquaint themselves with a world that for so long was neglected and disdained."

Constantinides is proposing that the dock replace a rotting pier near the Hallets Cove Playground, and be similar to one that the city built in Bay Ridge in 2013, where students are learning how oysters help the marine environment.

CB14 thinks kayaking will bring tourists

From the Queens Courier:

Community Board 14 Chair Dolores Orr said the Parks Department had presented the board’s park committee with rough plans for kayak launching bays in Rockaway, along with concession stands throughout areas that are part of Gateway National Park.

Orr said the community desperately needed the project even before Sandy, as it would bring more tourism and revenue to the area.

“We are very much in favor of that in Rockaway,” she said. “We have a very large kayaking community.”

Kayaking has tapped into the water sports subculture in Rockaway. The New York Times last summer featured a story about kayaking trips in the bay. Access, however, has been restricted for many — especially after the storm cause extensive damage and pollution.

Gateway units getting some grub

From the Daily News:

Jamaica Bay, a hidden jewel in New York City for nature lovers, could become a destination complete with food stands and rental stands for kayaks and bikes.

The Parks Department and the National Park Service are putting the finishing touches on a request for proposals to place concessions at several locations around the bay in Queens and Brooklyn.

The new concessions are part of a larger plan between the two agencies to cooperatively manage the 10,000-acre site, which is part of the Gateway National Recreation Area.

Parks officials unveiled the plan at the Community Board 14 Parks Committee meeting last Thursday. They posted a map of the area that showed several locations where concessions could be created.

But the agency declined to discuss the proposal until the RFP is released next week.

Macneil Park getting kayak launch

From the Times Ledger:

The kayak launch at MacNeil Park is on the horizon, the Queens Parks commissioner said at last week’s College Point Civic meeting, meaning residents may soon be able to take to the open waters with their self-propelled vessels.

“I think we are relatively close on this,” said Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski, referring to the proposed launch at the group’s monthly gathering at The Poppenhusen Institute, at 114-04 14th Road.

The community has sought a sandy launching point at the park for years, and though the project is on its way to becoming a reality, there are a few more hurdles to clear before residents can take to the water.

The department is still seeking a private partner to help run and maintain the launch, Lewandowski said, and until that happens it will remain firmly on the drawing board.

According to civic members, the plans do not yet include a shed or rental program, but the neighborhood would like to see one in the future.

State encourages kayaking and fishing in Newtown Creek

From The Brooklyn Paper:

Boating on Newtown Creek is safe, but be careful around the seafood and don’t take a dip, a new state study concluded.

Kayaking in the putrid Greenpoint waterway is not dangerous as long as paddlers avoid drinking or touching the water and do not schedule boat outings after big rainstorms, when raw sewage floods the creek, according to state health and environmental officials analyzed water and sediment samples along the 3.8-mile waterway.

“Because people do not usually submerge their heads in the water during these activities, the presumed volume of incidental water consumption is lower than swimming, and subsequently, the risk of illness can also be assumed to be lower,” the researchers said.

Brooklynites should be wary about eating anything they catch in Newtown Creek because of high bacteria levels, said state scientists, who recommended that women under age 50 and children under age 15 refrain from consuming any fish caught in the waterway. Men over age 15 and women over age 50 should limit their intake of North Brooklyn seafood at one meal of bluefish, carp, and bass per month, and no more than six crabs per week, the study said.

Is it just me, or does this sound totally ridiculous? You may not submerge your head in the water when you kayak, but you are breathing in toxic fumes coming off the water. It's a friggin' Superfund site, for God's sake! And how can they suggest anyone "limit" the amount of Newtown Creek seafood they consume? Keeping anything caught in the Creek should be against the law, period. Prediction: Many lawsuits in about 10 years when kayakers and fishermen are suffering from cancer.

The other side of the city

From the NY Times:

Kayaking on the tranquil waters of Jamaica Bay on a summer afternoon feels like a faraway vacation. It’s easy to forget your proximity to Wall Street, or even to Cross Bay Boulevard, which slices through the water to the island community of Broad Channel, Queens. Along the canals that run like side streets through this tiny neighborhood, people are quick with a smile and a wave. As the disco classic “Funkytown” blasted from a party on one porch, a duck, a goose and a great egret calmly observed from a nearby railing.

While Broad Channel has long had a reputation as a place wary of outsiders, you’re treated like a lifelong neighbor when you return your rented kayak to the Sunset Marina.

The marina — the only place in the five boroughs I could find to rent a kayak without having to join a club or a tour — is the kind of place where you can grab a beer and pull up a chair.