City floats new idea: a water map to paddle by

It’s warm and sunny, but I’m told not to get too comfortable. The water around the Bayside Marina in Queens is 47 degrees – so a slim chance of hypothermia still exists, should I capsize my kayak and abandon myself to the mercy of the depths.

IKEA Brooklyn’s esplanade in red hook

IKEA, the world’s leading home furnishings retailer, today announced the 6.5-acre waterfront esplanade it has built along the Erie Basin in Red Hook will open to the public when IKEA Brooklyn opens on June 18, 2008. 

boater safety

This is the weekend that boat lovers get their craft into the waters off Long Island.

That’s why state park officials, the U.S. Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board on Friday kicked off National Safe Boating Week

Federal boater permits could cost hundreds of dollars

A federal regulation aimed at reducing pollution caused by discharge from commercial ships could force recreational boaters to buy costly permits this fall, said Sen. Charles Schumer, who is supporting legislation to reverse the rule.

MANHATTAN CUP A BIG SUCCESS

IT was a normal day for the Manhattan Cup – good fishing, a great party and terrible weather.

It was a steady, cold rain and with northeast winds, the conditions were not comfortable to say the least, but this is one of those great tourneys that even Mother Nature can not dampen.

On Shore, a Week to Release Stress but Also a Chance to Address It

For many service members, Fleet Week is a fun time to get some shore leave, explore New York and have a few — maybe free — drinks.

Investigators find gaps in port security program

A Department of Homeland Security program to strengthen port security has gaps that terrorists could exploit to smuggle weapons of mass destruction in cargo containers, congressional investigators have found.

The Ferry: Past, Present and Future

BRIDGES spelled the end of New York’s ferries a century ago; when you could zip over the Queensboro by trolley or car, why bother with poky boats?

Exposing the Wall Between the River and New York City

To the builders of the 21st-century World Trade Center it is both an obstacle and an engineering marvel of 19th-century New York: the massive granite river wall that opened Manhattan’s edges to a world of seagoing commerce.

Son of Speak-Easy

 AFTER 400 years, the tides were due to turn. Here on New York’s harbor, roughnecked stevedores once toiled on grimy docks; then came piers-turned-parks, piers-turned-galleries and piers-turned-bowling alleys. Now, anchoring a trinity of luxury waterfront condo towers near West 11th Street designed by Richard Meier, is a seemingly out-of-place dive bar, the Rusty Knot.

Time and Cost Rise for Yankee Stadium Parks

The cost of replacing two popular parks where the new Yankee Stadium is being built has nearly doubled. At the same time, several of the eight new parks, which were supposed to be completed before the new stadium opens next spring, have been delayed by as much as two years, according to city documents.

Building boom revives Rockaways peninsula

For half a century, a paralyzing economic decline left the once-fashionable Rockaway peninsula virtually untouched by development.

NY tries to overcome snags in anniversary plan

When Virginia commemorated the 400th anniversary of the Jamestown settlement, the state spent about $15 million and welcomed the queen of England and President Bush to the celebration.

When New York state marks a pair of its own 400th anniversaries next year, it will have $4 million to spend. The guests may include a member of the Dutch royal family and a French or Canadian dignitary to be named later.

Cruising for bruising as ship slams pier

In a bumpy end to an otherwise smooth sail, the Norwegian Spirit crashed into a Manhattan pier Sunday as it returned from an eight-day cruise to San Juan and the British Virgin Islands, authorities said.

All 14 miles of NYC public beaches open for the season (through Labor Day)

‘PARK’ING YOUR MONEY

It’s the money pit that just gets deeper and deeper.

Costs for the controversial Brooklyn Bridge Park project have ballooned to $340 million – more than double the estimated $150 million price of six years ago.

New Report Released on Value of Coastal Habitats

EXPERTS SAY U.S. COASTS AND ESTUARIES CONTRIBUTE BILLIONS TO ECONOMY, BUT MUCH IS AT RISK Report from Restore America’s Estuaries and The Ocean Foundation Shows High Economic Value of Coasts and Estuaries at Jeopardy Without Restoration and Protection

Preserving Stuyvesant Town

These days, when New Yorkers get misty-eyed about Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, it’s above all about a faded vision of middle-class Manhattan. The developments, which some residents hope to have designated as city landmarks, have become, for many, a potent symbol of what Manhattan has ceased to be.

This Way to Brooklyn, This Way

The Brooklyn borough president, Marty Markowitz, kicked off the Brooklyn Bridge’s 125th anniversary celebration this afternoon by crooning “Happy Birthday” before joining other officials in unveiling the Brooklyn Bridge Pedestrian Walkway Project.

New Trend in Biofuels Has New Risks

In the past year, as the diversion of food crops like corn and palm to make biofuels has helped to drive up food prices, investors and politicians have begun promoting newer, so-called second-generation biofuels as the next wave of green energy.