This project will redevelop the City of Rockland’s Buoy Park (3 Park Drive) and Middle Pier on the City’s Downtown Waterfront. The facilities are well past the end of their design lives, and need redevelopment to address safety and accessibility issues, increase capacity, improve ability to withstand storm surges, upgrade utilities to modern standards, and improve pedestrian and multimodal connections. Taken together, these improvements will be an economic development catalyst for surrounding areas.
Redevelopment of Buoy Park and Middle Pier will provide:
- Increased capacity. The size of the pier itself will be more than doubled, allowing space for pedestrian access and seating, as well as room for commercial vehicles or portable cranes to access and maneuver. Float capacity will increase by 50%. The redesigned pier will also be well suited to accommodate a secure point of entry, if needed, by cruise ship passengers without disturbing normal public and commercial use. In addition, 858 SF of dinghy floats will be added to provide much-needed access to Harbor mooring fields.
- Improved ability to withstand storm surges. Middle Pier and the shore of Buoy Park will be redeveloped at an elevation 13.0 NAVD88 (18.7 MLLW), or 2’ above the FEMA AE11 flood zone. The current highest annual tide is 7.3 NAVD88 (12.9MLLW Datum). This higher elevation for Middle Pier will avoid impacts from expected storm surges. The pier will also be constructed to withstand inundation and with a design that can be adapted over time for additional resiliency improvements if needed. The shoreline of Buoy Park will be raised and armored with riprap and granite blocks to increase its resiliency and will incorporate living shoreline where appropriate.
- Improved pedestrian and multimodal connectivity. This project includes an ADA-compliant ramp-style walkway between Park Drive and Buoy Park that, for the first time, will provide ADA-compliant pedestrian access to and from Downtown. The ramp from the pier to the floats will also be ADA compliant. For further improvements to pedestrian connectivity, the project includes a promenade-width pedestrian trail along the water’s edge, which will connect to the City’s Harbor Trail. Improvements to multimodal connectivity include bike racks and wayfinding signage, as well as areas for bus loading.
- Updated park facilities and improved amenities. The new design shifts parking to improve view corridors from the street, plans for wayfinding signage, incorporates seang and viewing areas both in the park and on the pier, and landscapes with native vegetation.
- Updated utilities and stormwater management. Electric infrastructure will be replaced because the existing power at Middle Pier is undersized and not code-compliant. Power will be placed underground to improve view corridors and will include a new flood-proof and code-compliant service adequate to support shore power connections and charging on the floats. The project will establish permanent public water and fire protection, which currently does not exist in Buoy Park. It will also provide seasonal water for Middle Pier, park use, and events. Sewer pump out and water access will be provided at Middle Pier. In addition, a new storm drain system will be provided that will replace a failed storm drain outfall and a water quality device will be incorporated.
