Battery Coastal Resiliency Project Advances

The first phase of the $200 million Battery Coastal Resiliency project, which involved rebuilding and elevating part of the park’s wharf promenade, has been completed Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced on June 8.

The second and final part of the project, estimated to be completed by next year, will redesign the remaining portion of the wharf in a similar fashion. The overhaul is being overseen by the New York City Economic Development Corporation, the NYC Parks Department, and the Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice.

Officials say that the finished wharf will protect Lower Manhattan from the effects of rising sea levels, caused by climate change, while creating 400 construction jobs in the process.

It is also being built with reclaimed materials—such as granite and bronze—that have a low carbon footprint. These are being transported on barges rather than trucks, further limiting carbon emissions.

Work on the project began in 2024, under the Eric Adams administration, and serves as one distinct portion of a massive $2.7 billion reconfiguration of Lower Manhattan’s coast line—which are formally being dubbed Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency (LMCR) capital investments.

“The Battery is one of the most treasured public spaces in New York City, but it is also on the front lines of the climate crisis,” Mamdani said in a statement. “This project is a reminder that protecting New Yorkers requires action today.”

“With phase one now complete, we are taking a major step toward safeguarding Lower Manhattan’s residents, workers, small businesses and public spaces from rising seas and stronger storms,” he added.

Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman -Sigal praised the advancing project, as well. “The Battery is one of Manhattan’s most iconic public spaces and an essential part of our waterfront,” he said. “I applaud Mayor Mamdani, NYCEDC, NYC Parks and all of the partners who helped bring this critical project to fruition.”

The restructuring of the park’s wharf is occurring alongside two separate coastal resiliency projects underway nearby, the South Battery Park City Resiliency Project and the North/West Battery Park City Resiliency Project, which also serve as part of the LMCR master plan.

These got underway in 2025, and are being spearheaded by the Battery Park City Authority, rather than the NYCEDC and the Parks Department.

Much as the new wharf is intended to protect Battery Park itself, the BPC project will create an “integrated coastal flood risk management system”—essentially an adaptive flood barrier—for the Battery Park City neighborhood.

The final version of the southern BPC overhaul will begin at the Museum of Jewish Heritage, before running along Wagner Park and the Pier A plaza, as well as the northern border of Historic Battery Park. The northern and western BPC overhaul will begin at First Place and span BPC’s North Esplanade, as well create a deployable barrier crossing of West Street and Route 9A.

Raju Mann, the President and CEO of the BPCA, explicitly linked the newly-announced progression of the Battery Park wharf redesign to the progression of his organization’s overhaul projects.

““Together, these efforts will form a continuous line of protection for Lower Manhattan, ensuring our residents, buildings and infrastructure are resilient and future-proof,” he said in a statement.