A Jane's Walk This Friday: Gowanus – What the Hell is Going On?

The Municipal Art Society's much loved Jane's Walk event is a tradition to all those who love New York City and its diverse neighborhoods. This volunteer-led celebration of urban life, inspired by Jane Jacobs, includes two Gowanus tours this year that may interest you.

Gowanus-What The Hell Is Going On?  

May 6th at 6pm on Zoom.

This tour is led by friends Brad Vogel and Jack Riccobono of Voice of Gowanus.

"What the hell is going on in Gowanus, Brooklyn? A superfund cleanup. A massive proposed rezoning. Fights over sewage overflow tanks. And zany cultural happenings. Join Gowanusian Brad Vogel and co-host Jack Riccobono, members of the grassroots group Voice of Gowanus, as they dive into the “civic hot mess” on the Gowanus Canal. Learn about toxins, flooding, sewage, and displacement issues – with one host Zooming in from the street to illustrate."

Log in here: https://www.mas.org/events/gowanus-what-the-hell-is-going-on/

Gowanus Soundwalk 

In person, on demand

This self guided tour was organized by friend Miranda Sielaff.

"Participants are invited for a self-guided walk of Gowanus and to share recordings of their experience on Instagram by tagging @gowanussoundwalk. The Gowanus Canal became an EPA Superfund site in 2010, and historically polluted areas are undergoing remediation and redevelopment while life is ongoing for current businesses, residents and wildlife. Listening to all sounds in the environment brings us into contact with changes as they occur."

Log in here to register:  https://www.mas.org/events/gowanus-soundwalk/

For more MAS Jane's Walk tours this week-end, click here.

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Large Amount Of Coal Tar And CSO Pollution Flowing Into The Already Remediated Gowanus Canal 4th Street Basin

The Gowanus Canal's 4th Street Basin near Whole Foods earlier this year

Coal Tar sheen clearly visible on the surface of the water at Gowanus' 4th Street Basin

Looking Towards Whole Food's parking lot

CSO and Coal tar visible from Third Avenue, looking at the 4th Street Basin

From Whole Food's Esplanade.

The photos and videos above were taken early this morning in Gowanus.  They were taken byBrad Vogel of the Gowanus Dredgers and clearly show a large amount of Coal Tar and Combined Sewer Overflow at the Gowanus Canal's 4th Street Turning Basin near Whole Foods and 3rd Avenue.
The Environmental Protection Agency was immediately notified of today's condition.

The sight is heartbreaking. Why? Because the 4th Street Turning Basin was the first portion of the canal to be cleaned and capped as part of the EPA's Superfund remediation of the polluted canal.  The basin had been chosen for a  Dredging and Capping Pilot Study, the results of which informed and helped EPA fine-tune different techniques that will  be applied to the entire canal.
E.P.A.'s plans to begin the dredging of the main canal sometime in late 2020.

The pilot study was completed in late 2018 and represented a huge milestone. The work consisted of dredging the contaminated sediment at the bottom of the basin and capping it to prevent recontamination.  It was the first time in over 100 years that a section of the Gowanus was clean of debris and toxic 'black mayonnaise', the thick coal tar sediment at the bottom of the canal, which is a result of heavy industrial use in and around the Gowanus over centuries.

This is why the sight of new coal tar and CSO floating on this remediated section this morning is so upsetting. The pollution was flowing into the Basin from the main canal.  Perhaps Wednesday's heavy rains are to blame for the current conditions?

This illustrates the complexity of remediating such a polluted body of water . It also demonstrates  the fragility of the environment after decades of abuse.
Surely, the sight of little ducklings swimming around on the polluted water in Vogel's video above is just so sad.


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"Gowanus: A Look at Landmarks as Rezoning Looms": One Of The 2019 Jane's Walk Events Scheduled For This Sunday

Brad Vogel of the Gowanus Landmarking Coalition

The Municipal Art Society of New York is once again hosting a series of free, citizen-led walking tours around our city inspired by urban activist  Jane Jacobs.

Notable on the list of Jane's Walk for 2019 on Sunday, May 5th at 1 PM is a tour entitled  "Gowanus: A Look at Landmarks as Rezoning Looms" that is bound to be fascinating.

The walking tour is lead by my good friend Brad Vogel of the Gowanus Landmarking Coalition , who will explore the question: 'What will become of the distinctive buildings that make Gowanus......Gowanus' if New York City's ambitious up-zoning goes through?

From the Municipal Art Society's web site:

Gowanus: A Look at Landmarks as Rezoning Looms
Centered on the polluted Gowanus Canal, Brooklyn’s Gowanus neighborhood faces a potential city-led rezoning. The Gowanus Landmarking Coalition has pushed since 2017 for designation of a variety of landmarks in this quirky neighborhood BEFORE any rezoning arrives. Brad Vogel, a Gowanus resident, captain of the Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club, and a Coalition founder, will lead the tour with a focus on landmarks in the proposed rezoning area.

The tour is free but you must preregister here. The meeting point is the Gowanus Souvenir Shop, 567 Union Street.

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"Gowanus Landmarks—Make It So!": One Of The 2018 Jane's Walk Scheduled For This Sunday

Brad Vogel  (right) with Linda Mariano of FROGG at a recent Gowanus event.

The Municipal Art Society of New York is once again hosting a series of free, citizen-led walking tours around our city inspired by urban activist  Jane Jacobs.

Notable on the list of Jane's Walk for 2018 is a walking tour on Sunday, May 6 at 1 PM entitled "Gowanus Landmarks—Make It So!"  led by Brad Vogel that is bound to be fascinating.

From the organization's web site:

"As Gowanus prepares for a potential neighborhood re-zoning, join Gowanus resident and preservationist Brad Vogel for a walking tour of approximately two dozen structures proposed for city landmark status. The sites—largely cataloging the industrial character of Gowanus, along with some residential sections—were proposed by a coalition of local groups during the Gowanus Places planning study in 2017."

The Architect's Newspaper has included "Gowanus Landmarks—Make It So!" on its list of most promising 2018 Jane’s Walks. So you know you want to be there.

The walk will be about 1.5 hours long and will start on the Carroll Street Bridge at the intersection of Carroll and Bond Streets.

To register, click here.

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