Риверсайд-парк: История и современность нью-йоркского прибрежного парка.

Public park in New York City

Riverside Park is a scenic waterfront public park in the Upper West Side, Morningside Heights, and Hamilton Heights neighborhoods of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The park measures 4 mile (6 km) long and wide, running between the Hudson River and Henry Hudson Parkway to the west and the serpentine Riverside Drive to the east. Riverside Park was established by land condemnation in 1872 and was developed concurrently with Riverside Drive. Originally running between 72nd and 125th Streets, it was extended northward in the first decade of the 20th century. When the park was first laid out, the right of way of the New York Central Railroad's West Side Line blocked access to the river. In the 1930s, under parks commissioner Robert Moses's West Side improvement project, the railroad track was covered with an esplanade and several recreational facilities. Few modifications were made to the park until the 1980s, when it was renovated and extended southward as part of the Riverside South development. Riverside Park is part of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway, a pedestrian and bicycle route around Manhattan's waterfront. The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation operates and maintains the park, although its operating activities are supported by the Riverside Park Conservancy. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a New York City scenic landmark.

The of land in the original park between 72nd and 125th Streets were once inhabited by the Lenape people, but by the 18th century, European settlers used it for farming. Over the years, several villas were also constructed along the river. The area's two largest settlements were the villages of Bloomingdale and Manhattanville. In 1846, the Hudson River Railroad (later the West Side Line and Hudson Line) was built along the waterfront, connecting New York City to Albany. By the 1850s, New York City was growing quickly. By an act of the New York State Legislature passed that year, the Central Park commissioners had the responsibility of executing the Commissioners' Plan of 1811, the Manhattan street grid, within Upper Manhattan. An act providing for such was presented to the Legislature by commissioner Andrew Haswell Green in 1866 and approved the same year. In his argument for a riverside park, Green wrote that the only location on the Hudson River waterfront reserved for park space was the Battery at the southern tip of Manhattan island. The first segment of Riverside Park was acquired in 1872 by condemning lots for a cost of $7.25 million, or over for each of the in the original park. The plans for Riverside Park and Avenue brought the attention of William M. Tweed, who bought several lots adjacent to the park in anticipation of its construction. However, the area's difficult topography had come to the attention of the Manhattan park commissioners. Olmsted devised a plan that would create a main road extending from 72nd to 123rd Streets, with overpasses at 79th and 96th Streets, as well as "carriage roads" to serve the nearby neighborhood. The park and drive together would vary between wide. Construction on Riverside Park and Avenue started in 1874 Designers such as Calvert Vaux, Samuel Parsons, and Julius Munckwitz laid out the stretch of park and road between 72nd and 125th Streets in a way that made the park look like the Hudson Valley. Riverside Avenue opened in 1880 and quickly became popular, though parts of the road, such as the 96th Street overpass, remained incomplete through the 1900s. There was no single plan that encompassed the entirety of Riverside Park, which meant it would incorporate a number of separate designs. Olmsted wrote in 1886 that "in many important particulars the design has been mangled," saying that the park's terrain was too steep for recreation, and that Riverside Avenue's trees might block views of the river; despite this, Olmsted's offer to work with Vaux to create a unified park design was denied. With the park's construction came land purchases in the Upper West Side. However, development in the neighborhood was slow to come since most of the lots were too expensive for the middle class to purchase, and the wealthy preferred to settle on the East Side of Manhattan. At the time, few wealthy families had settled in the area. It would take until the 1900s and 1910s before Riverside Avenue and Park gained its present day concentration of upscale houses. The park was not extensively developed, either. Additionally, paths between 72nd and 79th Streets were laid out in 1891. At the time, Riverside Park did not include the shorefront. and two months later, the park commissioners adopted plans to build docks at 79th and 96th Streets. Under an act of the state legislature, the city condemned an underwater area along the shore, which would allow for land reclamation to expand the park. The permanent Grant's Tomb opened at 122nd Street two years later. Notwithstanding the lack of park development, Riverside Park still contained nuisances such as outdoor sewerage, squatters' shacks, and coal emissions from the trains, as well as garbage dumps at 77th and 96th Streets. These conditions persisted through the 1920s.

Several structures were built in the late 1890s and early 1900s. Two monuments were built in Riverside Park at the turn of the 20th century: a permanent Grant's Tomb at 120th Street in 1897, and the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument at 89th Street in 1902. This would be followed by eight other monuments from the 1900s through 1920s. though writer Elizabeth Cromley says that the monuments did fit in with the park aesthetic. The Gould Boathouse was abandoned by the 1920s and burned down in 1927. Another proposal, for a new boathouse for the Motor Boat Club, was vetoed by mayor George B. McClellan Jr. in 1906. The existence of Manhattan Valley at approximately 125th Street blocked the further development of Riverside Park northward. However, in 1898, construction commenced on an ornate viaduct carrying Riverside Drive across the valley to 135th Street. The viaduct, designed by F. Stuart Williamson, was completed in 1901 and consisted of 26 steel latticed arches rising 80 feet (24 m) above ground level. By 1902, plans were made to extend the park's border north to 155th Street. Williamson also designed the park extension, which contained stone retaining walls as well as grand entrances designed. The first extension of Riverside Park, from 125th/129th to 137th Streets, was completed in 1902. The city acquired land northward to 158th Street in 1903, and with the completion of this park extension in 1908, Riverside Avenue was renamed Riverside Drive. In 1906, there was an effort to expand Riverside Park by adding the piece of land bounded by Riverside Drive, Claremont Avenue, and 116th and 122nd Streets. This was seen as historically important because it was the site of Battle of Harlem Heights. The city also envisioned 116th Street as a grand gateway to Grant's Tomb. Neither the park extension nor the 116th Street gateway were built, and today, the only remnants of this plan are the wide curves at the intersection of 116th Street and Riverside Drive, where the Colosseum and Paterno apartment buildings sit. The underwater area owned by the city was filled between 1911 and 1912 using rock from the excavation of the Catskill Aqueduct. The landfilling was criticized as it was done without public knowledge. One prominent group to form during this time was the Women's League for the Protection of Riverside Park, formed in 1916 to advocate recreational uses within the park. Many of the club's members were from prominent or wealthy families, and a sizable number of its early members lived close to Riverside Park.

Even as there was discussion to expand Riverside Park, the New York Central Railroad continued to expand its facilities. This clashed with the ideals of the City Beautiful movement, which led an increasing segment of the population to view the railroad as a nuisance rather than a part of the park. As early as 1909, there were plans to expand the West Side Line to six tracks within Riverside Park, though this was heavily opposed. The crux of the disagreement was a stipulation that would give New York Central the rights to develop the shorefront with commercial enterprises. The area between 59th and 72nd Streets was being planned for development into train yards, which citizens' groups strongly opposed, and the city had no money to condemn that land. Disputes over the railroad's role within the park continued for several years. At the time, there were other issues that beset the rail line; in particular, the street level southern section of the line was known as Death Avenue due to the high level of collisions there. In 1913 New York Central presented a proposal for the railroad to be grade separated, including constructing a new tunnel within Riverside Park. This plan was received favorably by the citizens' groups. The railroad grade separation proposal remained stalled until the passage of the Kaufman Act in 1924, which forced the electrification of all railroads in the city. The same year, comptroller Charles L. Craig put forth a plan to create a waterfront parkway in Riverside Drive to alleviate vehicular traffic. The "Craig Plan", the first of four unsuccessful blueprints for the park's reconstruction that were proposed in the 1920s, also called for the inclusion of athletic facilities, a feature that would eventually be included in the park's reconstruction. Planners thought that the railroad tunnel's utility could be increased as well. While some suggested building the parkway atop the tunnel, others proposed converting the top of the tunnel into parkland and building a waterfront parkway instead. though they opposed the scenic parkway in Riverside Park. Other organizations also opposed building the parkway in Riverside Park; for instance, the City Club endorsed building the parkway on the waterfront instead, in order to give more space to recreational uses. The waterfront parkway proposal was supported only by a minority of architects and organizations, and was voted down by the Board of Estimate. In June 1929, the city voted to approve a plan that would build the parkway above the tracks, but not on the waterfront.

The architecture firm McKim, Mead & White was hired to create plans for the parkway and the grade separated railroad tunnel (later known as the Freedom Tunnel). In order to meet the requirements of the project, the firm proposed erecting a City Beautiful style retaining wall with arches, similar to that of a Roman aqueduct, that seemed to support the highway above it. The retaining wall would include parapets and Neoclassical detailing, as well as 50 feet (15 m) arches to ventilate the railroad tracks behind the wall. The road would have contained classical flagpoles and lampposts, viewing areas, and resting areas for pedestrians. deriding it as a "visionary scheme,"</blockquote>

Moses's updated "West Side Improvement" plan, designed by Gilmore D. Clarke, Michael Rapuano, and Clinton Loyd, retained the railroad tunnel under the park, but moved the parkway to the shorefront instead; this would become the Henry Hudson Parkway. As part of the project, the parkway was to connect with the West Side Elevated Highway at the south end of Riverside Park, while the railroad would connect to the High Line viaduct even further south. The parkway was to be built on newly filled land along the shore, requiring the extension of the shoreline by 50 feet (15 m) and the dumping of of fill. This resulted in a more contiguous park area, since the roof of the tunnel would then be occupied by parkland. Moses's plan was also more actively focused toward recreation:

By mid 1934, Moses was ready to employ about 4,000 workers through the Works Progress Administration. Filling operations were underway by early 1935, requiring the dumping of of dirt per day. and was completed in 1937. In addition, plans for a new boat basin at 149th Street were announced in 1939. The West Side Improvement project was completed by 1941. The project was twice as big as the Hoover Dam's construction.

For several decades after the completion of the Moses era improvements, few changes were made to the park: a playground at 76th Street was added in 1952; and the 103rd Street playground was restored in 1960. A monument to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, first proposed in 1947, was never realized due a lack of funding and opposition from city officials. By 1962, a new children's playground was proposed between 102nd and 106th Streets, to be dedicated to the philanthropist Adele Rosenwald Levy. The architect Louis Kahn and the artist and landscape architect Isamu Noguchi prepared plans for a $1 million facility to include among other things, a community center, an amphitheater, and play structures. The plan proved to be controversial: advocates claimed the playground would create additional recreational space, while opponents argued that the playground would be excessively expensive and serve essentially as a memorial to a private figure. Despite having redesigned the playground five times, and having the support of Mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr., the designers met with much resistance. In 1963, opponents filed suit to prevent construction of the project, and in 1966, the project was cancelled by the new administration of Mayor John Lindsay. In 1970 a writer for The New York Times observed that the northern part of the park, in western Harlem, was in worse condition than the original park near the Upper West Side and Morningside Heights. Around this time, several shafts were installed in Riverside Park as part of a project to reduce sewage outflows into the Hudson River, which forced the temporary closure of part of the park. In 1971, officials proposed converting the West Side Elevated Highway and Henry Hudson Parkway into Westway, a six lane interstate highway connecting the George Washington Bridge and the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel, which would have resulted in the condemnation of portions of Riverside Park. The construction of Westway within Riverside Park was ultimately deemed infeasible due to a state law that prohibited the Henry Hudson Parkway's conversion into an interstate highway. The Westway plan was abandoned altogether by 1984.

By 1979, NYC Parks was restoring retaining walls and making plans to rehabilitate several playgrounds. The failed Westway proposal had inspired a movement to make Riverside Park a designated city landmark, so as to preclude future construction that might take away parkland. Advocates petitioned the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission to make the park an official city landmark. They met with success; Riverside Park was designated as a New York City scenic landmark in 1980 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1983. Their projects included the conservation of 500 endangered Dutch elm trees in Riverside Park. The organization soon turned toward preservation oriented initiatives, successfully working to stop July 4 fireworks shows in the park and plans for a restaurant at the 79th Street Boat Basin. The city indicated in 1983 that it planned to refurbish parts of the park, especially the section between 97th and 110th Streets, at a cost of $910,000. The park's partial renovation was completed in 1984. By the 1990s, there were estimated to be between 75 and 325 homeless people living within Riverside Park, including the Freedom Tunnel. In 1987, fourteen area cooperatives combined to create the Riverside Park Fund to raise money for maintenance. The Fund also sponsored a proposal for a continuous $3 million path that would run the length of the park to the George Washington Bridge, though this path would be delayed through the mid 1990s. Starting in 1992, NYC Parks restored the retaining wall within Riverside Park between 98th and 120th Streets. By 1994, the Riverside Park Fund was conducting various projects including landscaping, the installation of new playgrounds, and the restoration of existing facilities. A dog run was proposed for the Morningside Heights section of the park in 1998, but was canceled after opposition. The North River Wastewater Treatment Plant was constructed between 137th and 144th Streets, alongside Riverside Park's northern section, during the late 1980s. The Riverbank State Park was built atop the plant, opening in 1993. Ten Mile River Playground was renovated in 1995 for $450,000. Facing great opposition and hobbled by his weak financial position, Trump agreed in 1990 to adopt a new plan for the site put forward by six civic groups. The new plan, called Riverside South, included much smaller buildings centered around a new Riverside Park South, stretching between 72nd and 59th Streets with a similar design to the original Riverside Park. In order to expand Riverside Park by , Trump's proposed shopping mall would be eliminated and the elevated West Side Highway would be relocated eastward to grade and buried. A new Riverside Boulevard would curve above the relocated highway, with the park sloping down toward the river. Portions of the former rail yard, such as the New York Central Railroad 69th Street Transfer Bridge, would be incorporated into the new park. In November 1998, the first phase of the new Riverside Park South started, having been designed by Thomas Balsley & Associates. Pier I at 70th Street, part of the railyard, was rebuilt; it maintains its original length of 795 feet (242 m), but is narrower than originally, at 55 feet (17 m). Phase 2, opened in 2003, comprises a waterfront section from 70th Street to 65th Street, including two plazas at 66th and 68th Streets and a jagged waterfront. Phase 3, opened in August 2006, stretches from 65th Street to 62nd Street on the waterfront. The design of Phases 5 and 6, located between the current and future highway alignments, is partially tied to the fate of the highway relocation, the timing of which is still uncertain. However, NYC Parks has approved interim and final designs for those two sections; construction of the interim park started in August 2016. Relocating the highway will require some reconstruction of the park.

By the Fund's 20th anniversary, much of the park south of 125th Street had been restored, and Upper West Side and Morningside Heights residents had become invested in the park's well being. In 2015, after a quarter century of planning, construction started on a new pedestrian bridge connecting Hamilton Heights to Riverside Park at 151st Street, replacing a tunnel and a long staircase. After some delays, the bridge opened in 2017. Also in 2017, NYC Parks released a master plan for Riverside Park. The plan called for the restoration of the rotunda, Soldiers & Sailors Monument, Cherry Walk, and pedestrian walkways; expansion of the marina; construction of new bicycle paths and a new 111th Street entrance; and construction of new play areas in Morningside Heights and at the north waterfront. A bicycle bypass was proposed in 2016 to reduce frequent congestion and collisions between pedestrians and bicyclists in the park. The first section opened in 2019. Riverside Park continued to suffer from various problems such as faulty drainage systems and deterioration. In 2019, The New York Times observed that following every rainstorm, water tended to pool on the roof of the Freedom Tunnel and other locations due to the three tiered topography of the park, and that the tunnel's retaining wall was leaking. In addition, there was visible decay in some of the structures within Riverside Park, such as the 79th Street Rotunda, retaining walls, and various pathways. Other issues included the poor design of Riverside Drive's curbs and the dilapidated condition of the park's trees. Nonetheless, parts of the park remained in poor condition in the early 2020s, with inadequate lighting and bad pavement. A $7.4 million renovation of Ten Mile River Playground was announced in late 2023; during the project's planning, a set of dark monkey statues in the playground were removed.

Riverside Park is classified by the Parks Department as a community park covering The primary section of Riverside Park is the tiered slopes between the Henry Hudson Parkway and Riverside Drive from 72nd Street to 125th Street, designated as both an official New York City landmark and a NRHP site. This section ranges from wide. The eastern border of the park is generally Riverside Drive, a curving avenue with a maximum grade of 1 in 27. Various apartment buildings and religious/educational institutions on Riverside Drive overlook the park. The Henry Hudson Parkway, on the park's western border, contains numerous interchanges that are included as part of the official landmark designation. The 1930s rebuild was designed by architect Michael Rapuano, a Rome Prize Fellow, who placed London plane trees and Robinia trees atop the Freedom Tunnel. At 74th and 97th Streets, curving stone staircases led from the top of the tunnel to the playgrounds below. During the renovation, much of the original topography was modified in order to conceal the tunnel, and large clusters of trees were installed elsewhere in the park. Most of the initial plantings were removed by the 1980s.

Sources vary on how many tiers are included in Riverside Park. James T. Dowell of the Riverside Park Fund states that there are three tiers: Riverside Drive on top, the promenade above the Freedom Tunnel below, and the parkland beside the Henry Hudson Parkway and waterfront esplanade at the bottom. The rock outcropping still exists and is the only such formation at Riverside Park with a name. This walkway includes Cherry Walk, a path between 100th and 125th Streets, which is named for the cherry trees beside it. The grouping of 700 cherry trees was donated in 1909 by the Committee of Japanese Residents. Riverside Park contains a bicycle lane that runs for most of the park's length, except for a small gap in West Harlem. However, there are multiple locations where the bicycle lane intersects with the pedestrian paths, causing congestion. As such, a bicycle bypass is being built within several sections of Riverside Park.

A bird sanctuary exists in Riverside Park between 116th to 124th Streets. New York City Audubon estimates that birdwatchers have seen more than 177 bird species at the sanctuary since the 1980s. About has been reforested and over 3,000 individual plants have been placed in the sanctuary since 1997. More than 80 bird species have been seen at the Bird Drip, a man made water feature near 120th Street. Riverside Park contains numerous other species of wildlife. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation states that park visitors can see waterfowl such as Canada geese, mallards, and American black ducks; raptors, such as red tailed hawks, American kestrels and peregrine falcons; songbirds; raccoons; and reptiles. In addition, a wild turkey named Giuliani was first spotted at Riverside Park in 2003, and several other wild turkeys have since been observed at the park.

Riverside Park includes numerous monuments and statues.

The Amiable Child Monument, at Riverside Drive north of 122nd Street, on the slope north of Grant's Tomb, The monument is composed of a granite urn on a granite pedestal inside a wrought iron fence. Originally erected by George Pollock, who was either the boy's father or his uncle, the monument has been replaced twice due to deterioration. It is thought to be the only private, single person grave on city owned land in New York City.

The Eleanor Roosevelt Monument is located at 72nd Street and was dedicated in 1996. The landscape architects Bruce Kelly and David Varnell designed the planted, circular monument. The artist Penelope Jencks sculpted the larger than life statue of Eleanor Roosevelt, the boulder on which it leans, and the foot stone on which it rests. The architect Michael Dwyer designed inscriptions in the surrounding granite pavement, including a quotation from Roosevelt's 1958 speech at the United Nations advocating universal human rights, and a bronze tablet, located in the planting bed, summarizing her achievements.

The Firemen's Memorial, located on the west side of Riverside Drive opposite West 100th Street, was dedicated in 1913. A tablet, dedicated to the horses who assisted the firemen with their duties, was embedded in the monument's terrace paving in 1927.

The General Franz Sigel memorial, at 106th Street, was designed by the architect William W. Bosworth and dedicated in October 1907. Karl Bitter sculpted the centerpiece, an equestrian statue of Sigel, who attained the rank of general in the Union Army during the Civil War.

The design of Grant's Tomb, located in the median of Riverside Drive at 122nd Street, is loosely based on the design of the ancient Mausoleum of Halicarnassus. Grant's Tomb is both a New York City landmark and a national monument.

The Joan of Arc memorial, located at 93rd Street, was designed by the architect John V. Van Pelt and dedicated in 1915. The artist Anna Hyatt Huntington sculpted the statue,

The monument in honor of Hungarian leader Lajos (Louis) Kossuth is located at West 113th Street. It was dedicated in 1928.

The Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument, dedicated in 1902, commemorates Civil War veterans of both the Union Army and Navy. The Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument is a designated New York City landmark.

Riverside Park almost received a monument to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, which would have been located between 83rd and 84th Streets. A granite plaque, set in the paving at the end of the Promenade, near 84th Street, on October 19, 1947, is inscribed: "This is the site for the American memorial to the heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto Battle April–May 1943 and to the six million Jews of Europe martyred in the cause of human liberty." Subsequent proposals for larger monuments were made by Jo Davidson, Percival Goodman, Ivan Meštrović, and a partnership between Erich Mendelsohn and Nathan Rapoport; A monument measuring with a height of 80 feet (24 m), to be sculpted by Meštrović, was approved in 1952 but was never built. NYC Parks restored the site in 2001. It is now called the Warsaw Ghetto Memorial Plaza.

There are several other monuments in Riverside Park. These include:
Hippopotamus Fountain, at 91st Street: designed by the landscape architect Mark K. Morrison, sculpted by the artist Bob Cassilly, and dedicated in 1993. General Horace Porter memorial, at 122nd Street (at Grant's Tomb): a flagpole on a pedestal, dedicated in 1939. John Merven Carrere memorial, at 99th Street: a pink granite terrace designed by the architect Thomas Hastings and dedicated to the architect John Merven Carrère in 1919. Major General Frederick D. Grant, at 122nd Street (at Grant's Tomb): a flagpole on a pedestal dedicated in 1939. Robert Ray Hamilton Fountain, at 76th Street: designed by the architects Warren and Wetmore and dedicated in 1906. Woman's Health Protective Association memorial, at 116th Street: sculpted by Bruno Louis Zimm and composed of a stele, an exedra, and a drinking fountain, it was dedicated in 1910.

Riverside Park contains several other physical structures, including a three story rotunda with a boat basin, The facility takes in hundreds of thousands of dollars in dock fee revenues each year. NYC Parks provides fresh water lines and a boat pump out system for sewage disposal at no additional cost, but all other services, including electricity, telephone, television, and Internet access, are charged to boat owners. Adjacent to the boat basin, the 79th Street Rotunda, a three story traffic circle, allows access to the Henry Hudson Parkway and to the park from 79th Street. The rotunda is constructed with reinforced concrete clad with cut stone. An underground parking garage sits below it. An arcade with vaulted Guastavino tiled ceilings surrounds the rotunda and overlooks the marina. Currently, it is the site of the open air O’Neals’ West 79th Street Boat Basin Cafe. The designs of the 79th Street Rotunda and Boat Basin have changed little since their construction. The structures were designed to make Riverside Park into a grand "river gate" for marine travelers.

The Peter Jay Sharp Volunteer House is located at 107th Street. Built in the late 19th century, the structure was formerly a one story limestone tool shed that had become dilapidated over the years. In 2003, the architects Murphy Burnham & Buttrick converted the building into an architectural folly, adding a mezzanine and second floor, expanding the floor area from The Riverside Park Conservancy operates out of the building, with facilities to aid their operation, including: storage space, plant growing areas, a restroom, a kitchenette, and a meeting room on the second floor.

Riverside Park's numerous recreation facilities include tennis, volleyball and basketball courts; soccer fields; and a skatepark.

Riverside Park contains a number of facilities. There are nine baseball fields in the park, including five standalone fields (four from 104th to 107th Streets and one at 72nd Street), as well as two pairs of baseball fields that each overlap with another sporting field, at 77th and 146th/147th Streets. There are also five sets of basketball courts at 71st, 76th, 102nd, 111th, and 148th Streets. Seven handball courts are located in Riverside Park, five at 111th Street and two at 71st Street, as well as 20 tennis courts, ten each at 96th and 119th Streets. There are also six soccer fields, at 71st, 74th, 77th, 101st, 103rd, and 107th Streets. Volleyball courts are located at 102nd, 105th, and 148th Streets. Most of the facilities were built in the 1930s reconstruction of Riverside Park, except a recreational building near West 91st Street, as well as the Columbia University tennis courts near 119th–121st Streets. In addition to the 79th Street Boat Basin, there is a kayak launch at 148th Street. During the spring and the summer, a free kayak rental also operates at 72nd Street. The Riverside Clay Tennis Association (RCTA) operates ten red clay tennis courts near 96th Street, which are open to the general public.

A nonprofit organization called the Riverside Park Conservancy maintains the park. while NYC Parks owns and operates the land and facilities. The Conservancy's responsibilities include maintaining and restoring park areas, as well as providing educational and cultural programs. In the fiscal year ending December 31, 2019, the Conservancy had net assets (own equity) of about $4.82 million and liabilities of $1.34 million, which amounted to total assets of $6.16 million. Net assets increased $630,000 from the fiscal year ending December 31, 2018. In the late 1970s, New York City's park system was in bad shape: underfunded and plagued with crime. As a result, the Riverside Park Fund was founded in 1987 as a grassroots community organization formed to reclaim the park by establishing community gardens and improving park maintenance. Merritt Birnbaum, who was previously executive director of the Friends of Governor's Island, was named President & CEO in 2022. It has 30 staff who focus on park programs and projects, like gardetns, playgrounds, sports fields, monuments and landscaping. Cumulatively the Conservancy had received $6.6 million in private donations and had spent 80,000 worker hours on restoring the park.

The Robert M. Morgenthau Citizenship Award was created by the Riverside Park Conservancy in 2016, in honor of Robert Morgenthau, the former Manhattan District Attorney. It is granted each year to an honoree chosen for their service to the park and the community.

There are numerous subway stations that are located within two blocks of the park, all on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line From south to north, they are 72nd Street, 79th Street, 86th Street, 96th Street, 103rd Street, Cathedral Parkway–110th Street, 116th Street–Columbia University, 125th Street, 137th Street–City College, and 145th Street. Direct bus service is provided by the buses along Riverside Drive, as well as numerous crosstown routes such as the Several other bus routes also stop within a few blocks of the park.