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.  The 346,000-square-foot IKEA Brooklyn will be the Swedish company’s 1st store and restaurant destination in New York City, 4th in the New York-New Jersey area, and 35th in the United States.  IKEA Brooklyn is located on 22 acres along the Erie Basin waterfront in Red Hook, south of the BQE/Gowanus Expressway and southeast of the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel. 

 

“We are proud to make Red Hook’s waterfront accessible to our neighbors, customers and visitors,” said Mike Baker, IKEA Brooklyn store manager.  “By keeping the esplanade separate from our store, buffering it with berms, plants, trees and decorative panels and preserving many elements of the old shipyard, we have built a tribute to the site’s maritime history.”

 

Highlights of the nearly mile-long waterfront esplanade – which will be run similar to a city park, with hours from dawn to dusk – include paved walkways and a bike path, as well as:

 

Bountiful Landscaping – More than 9,000 plants, including shrubs such as roses, bayberry and vibernums as well as lush native and ornamental grasses, complement 558 trees – such as red cedar, black pine, white birch and Douglas fir – that create park-like settings and line the esplanade.  5,000 flowering giant allium bulbs will seed purple springtime flowers.

 

Historic, Maritime & Architectural Features – IKEA “rescued” more than 50,000 cobblestones – called ‘Belgian blocks’ – from the roadbed and incorporated them into the esplanade design.  Also, an 18-foot constructed compass, 12 yellow bollards, many orange-painted tools, two blue winches and 24 chocks (with names of 72 ships that were repaired at the shipyard) all reflect the waterfront’s heritage.  In addition, there are 13 interpretive signs along the railings, recounting the history of shipyard operations on the site.  Three sculptural kiosks depict an image architecturally the sun’s shadow used to cast on the ground through ships’ masts at the shipyard.

Seating Options and Lighting Elements – More than 250 benches and chairs –representing eight different arrangements ranging from timber benches, steel and wood benches, and steel chaises to movable tables and chairs as well as traditional wood and concrete benches – will allow visitors to sit, perch, relax or recline as they admire the views.  The esplanade will be illuminated at night in part by 115 light poles that are enhanced by decorative lights on the tables and the bridge, while other lights highlight the four preserved and restored gantry cranes on site.

 

IKEA Brooklyn will present 48 different room settings, three model home interiors, a supervised children’s play area, and a 450-seat restaurant – with views of the lower Manhattan skyline and Statue of Liberty – serving Swedish specialties such as meatballs with lingonberries or salmon plates, as well as American dishes.  Other family-friendly features include a ‘Children’s IKEA’ area in the showroom, baby care rooms, preferred parking and play areas throughout the store.  IKEA Brooklyn also will offer home delivery, kitchen installation and design consultation services.  The project created 500 construction jobs and more than 500 new IKEA coworkers. 

There currently are more than 275 IKEA stores in 36 countries, including 34 in the U.S.  Other new stores will open in:  Charlotte, NC; Somerville, MA; and Tampa, FL.  Since its 1943 founding in Sweden, IKEA has offered a wide range of home furnishings and accessories of good design and function, at low prices so the majority of the people can afford them.  IKEA has been ranked in FORTUNE’s annual “100 Best Companies to Work For” list (three years in a row), Working Mother magazine’s annual list of “100 Best Companies for Working Mothers” (four years in a row) and Training magazine’s annual “Top 100” ranking of companies that excel at human capital development (five years in a row).  IKEA incorporates environmentally friendly and socially responsible efforts into day-to-day business, and continually supports initiatives that benefit causes such as children and the environment.  For more information about IKEA, please go to www.IKEA-USA.com.