By Gabriela Resto-Montero
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MIDTOWN EAST — There may come a day when East Siders won't have to trek all the way to the Hamptons or Fire Island to cool off in the hot summer months.
Lawmakers and community members met Thursday to kick off the planning for the East Side Blueway, a proposal to transform the East River waterfront into a four-mile park linked by pools, piers and promenades stretching from East 38th Street to the Brooklyn Bridge.
"It's using the water as an amenity," said Christine Datz-Romero, executive director of the Lower East Side Ecology Center.
"We could use it as an opportunity to educate people about water quality," she added. "We have this barrier but they would care more about it if they wanted to go to the swimming pool."
The meeting, held at the 14th Street Y at 344 East 14th Street, focused on setting up the committees that will oversee the four mile development.
Funds for the planning were provided by the New York State Department of State, which issued Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer's office a $650,000 grant in December.
"The communities that stretch from east Midtown to the Lower East Side are among those with the least green space in this city," Assemblyman Brian Kavanagh said in a statement.
"We are determined to bring together the resources needed to change this," he said.
Once finished, the park will serve as a recreational and educational open space for New Yorkers, said Susannah Vickers, director of budget and grants for Stringer's office.
Planners will work with city agencies to incorporate existing waterfront ideas into the design, including Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Vision 2020 Waterfront Plan.
The next step for the group will be hiring a project manager to coordinate the process, which will take two years under the terms of the grant, Vickers said.
Despite the coordination and enthusiasm of the group, funding the Blueway project beyond the conceptual stage will be difficult, in the opinion of Emir Lewis, 42, a Lower East Side resident.
"It all boils down to money," said Lewis, a native New Yorker who suggested reaching out to other neighborhoods to begin fund-raising for construction of the Blueway.
Lewis joked that the name of the project may also be problematic.
"Greenway makes more sense because we don't have any blue water anywhere in New York," he said.
