Hudson River Park Will Takeover Non-Profit As 'Visionary' Retires

HUDSON RIVER PARK, NY — Two Hudson River institutions will merge in the coming months.

The River Project, an environmental non-profit on Manhattan's westside, will transition into becoming a part of the Hudson River Park Trust, the two organizations announced this week.

The River Project, founded in 1986 by marine scientist Cathy Drew, paved the way to designate the Hudson River Park an estuarine sanctuary. Drew officially retired in May after more than three decades of promoting scientific research and education at the massive westside park — including a "Wetlab" at Pier 40, a marine biology field station with native species from the Hudson River.

"My vision in founding The River Project 33 years ago was of publicly accessible scientific research and hands-on, get-wet education for all ages," Drew said in a statement. "I am excited that this vision will continue and grow under the leadership of Hudson River Park Trust as part of the Hudson River Estuarine Sanctuary."

The River Project began at Pier 26 in Tribeca and was relocated to Pier 40 as the Tribeca pier undergoes construction.

"Cathy was a visionary for something that has become the Hudson River Marine Sanctuary," newly minted executive director of The River Project Richard Corman told Patch.

The organizations' 12- to 18-month "strategic transition plan" will merge the non-profit's programming with the Trust's existing educational efforts, called the Estuary Lab.

"This [transition] is allowing us to collaborate in a way that is going to be so beneficial to both organizations," said Corman, who has lived in Tribeca for some 30 years. "Both organizations are really rolling up their sleeves and working on making this a great success."

The collaboration has already helped The River Project open up the Wetlab for additional Sundays this summer, Corman said.

The Trust has nearly doubled how many people the Estuary Lab serves since it began in 2013, serving 29,000 in 2018, the Trust said. The River Project served another 5,300 last year.

The longterm plan is to bring an estuarium to Pier 26 — where the future iteration of The River Project would be housed, the Trust said. Wils said $10 million has been raised for the project and additional funds are imminent, though it will likely be scaled back from a previously estimated $50 million project.

"The River Project has inspired and shared our mission to empower the next generation of scientists and educate the nearby community on their local waterways," Madelyn Wils, who heads the Trust, said in a statement.

Corman said the decision to merge with the Trust was in part due to the belief it would help the non-profit's work continue.

"It was important for us to believe that the mission that has inspired and driven The River Project is a mission that's important to the park. And we believe that," Corman said.

Two River Project staffers have been hired by the Trust. Another will head to graduate school after the transition, and two other positions are in flux, Corman said.

Drew's legacy will be preserved in a to-be-determined way — perhaps through signage or at the future Pier 26 estuarium, the groups say.

"It's exciting that [Cathy Drew's] legacy will be preserved, and that we have grown and reached the ability as an organization to carry this work on," Wils told Patch. "We love celebrating the estuary and the importance of it."