Green City

On March 15 Battery Park City welcomed a public library to its 92 acre neighborhood. Fitting to the area's environmentally friendly standards the library was granted a gold certification from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the first New York Public Library to be green.

Costing $6.7 million to construct, the two story, 10,000-square-foot library joins the community of picturesque esplanades, ball-fields, plazas, parks, public exhibits, residential towers, and the World Financial Center.

The library was lobbied for by the community for over a decade, it was the only thing that seemed to be missing from the "planned community."

Battery Park City's origin can be linked to Nelson Rockefeller, Governor from 1958 t0 1973, who wanted to be build the World Trade Center as an extension of Wall Street. The mass amount of landfill equated to man made land.

Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) was set up in 1968 by Rockefeller and state legislators to oversee the finances and development of the area. This public benefit corporation maintains a balanced community, making sure they dedicate 30 percent of the neighborhood to park space. As for the residential, commercial, and retail space they have guidelines that incorporate environmental specifications to maximize products and energy.

On their website Battery Park City offers "Green Guidelines" on "Growing a Green Community." These guidelines offer a wealth of information on creating and maintaining a healthy and sustainable environment, which they hope other communities will invest in doing.

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