Midtown's Drab Waterside Pier To Get Colorful Makeover

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — The city plans to liven up Waterside Pier, a drab concrete walkway on the East River in Murray Hill, with brightly colored paint job intended to draw more people to the under-used space.

An elevated platform that runs between East 38th and 41st streets, the pier was rebuilt in 2016 to replace a previous, aging pier that mostly served as a parking lot.

Though officials promised park space, the new Waterside Pier consists of little more than a concrete expanse broken up by a few benches.

That will change starting this month, when the Parks Department redecorates it by painting colorful shapes and installing passive turf areas, picnic tables, umbrellas and fence banners, according to plans shared exclusively with Patch.

Titled "New Wave Pier," the "retro redesign" is inspired by quirky, colorful aesthetics of the 1980s and was influenced by Keith Haring, Duran Duran and the sitcom Saved By The Bell, the Parks Department said.

Just south of the United Nations headquarters, the new pier will also be decorated with signs along the waterfront railing bearing the phrase "Wish you were here," translated into more than 25 languages spoken in New York City.

All told, the city aims to make the pier "a destination for New Yorkers to enjoy picnics, walk along the East River, and watch the ferries go by," the Parks Department said.

The pier will be closed for four to six weeks during installation, the Parks Department said. The pier will not be affected by any of the city's upcoming resiliency work to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

The expansion of the Manhattan Greenway may run through the area, a Parks spokesperson said, adding that the new design will accommodate it.