Friends of Sherman Creek was founded in 2005 and is the only group specifically created to help advocate for and promote access to the waterfront and the expansion of the Sherman Creek Waterfront park. In 2008 we submitted a proposal to help kickstart the reopening of Academy Street on the Harlem River, which has been closed to the public for many years, by submitting a proposal for a "pedestrian walkway" to the NYC Dept. of Transportation "Plaza Program."

On July 13, I was the person quoted in WaterWire who asked "Is Con Edison part of the planning and will they provide funding?" We at FOSC feel that Con Edison has a great opportunity to do right by helping support financially the reopening of the Academy Street Esplanade as Phase 1 of this much needed and long overdue project. I am pleased to announce that Friends of Sherman Creek was able to reach out to Con Ed representatives at the meeting to discuss future collaboration for the site. We at FOSC will continue advocating for and promoting this worthy cause that not only will benefit the communities of Washington Heights and Inwood but all of New York; and together with the reopening of the Highbridge it is going to be the next waterfront destination in NYCity.

Obed Fulcar

Founder/Director of Environmental Education, Friends of Sherman Creek 

Editor's note: A Con Edison spokesperson, David Gmach, said, "we have been participating in efforts to work on the Sherman Creek area where Con Edison is a major property owner for close to ten years now. We have been working very closely with EDC in terms of development. Our position is we need to balance what our needs are in terms of service and we also understand the need to have greater waterfront access." 

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Even With CSO Occurrences, the Waterways are Cleaner than Ever 

To the editor,

It was true that millions of gallons of raw sewage were being dumped into our rivers due to the shut-down of the North River Sewage Treatment Plant. Activities that involved direct contact with the water, such as swimming and kayaking, were rendered unsafe and were cancelled.

However hundreds of recreational and excursion vessels of all kinds were not impacted by this event, and operated normally. I was out on Thursday evening on our historic retired fireboat John J Harvey with a party of about 50 and there wasn't even an odor of any kind in the North (Hudson) and East Rivers. Other vessels including water taxis, Statue Cruises, Classic Harbor Line, Circle Line and many others operated normally.

Yes, this was a serious event that warranted a fast response by officials and safety warnings. But what was overlooked is the fact that every time there is a significant rainfall in the city, rainwater mixes with sewage and overloads our treatment plants, resulting in a direct discharge of sewage into our waterways on a regular basis.

In spite of that, our waterways are generally cleaner than ever, and on-water recreation of all kinds continues to become more and more popular as New Yorkers re-connect with our waterfront.

Capt. John Doswell

ED, Working Harbor Committee 

Founder, Friends of Hudson Riv. Park 

Co-owner, fireboat John J. Harvey