Hudson River Park's Pier 40 is, to put it mildly, not in a good way. It's broke. It's in danger of sinking into the river. All of its plans always fall apart. It's clearly desperate. Also, it got messed up by Hurricane Sandy and still doesn't have power. And to top it all off, one of the park's primary benefactors, Douglas Durst, is stepping down from his position as chairman of the Friends of Hudson River Park due to a disagreements with the Hudson River Park Trust over what steps should be taken to save the pier, the Observer reports. Durst had been lobbying for the trust to shore up the piles that hold up the pier and turn the whole thing into parking and commercial leasing. The trust, on the other hand, has absolutely no interest in pouring any more money into the rapidly sinking ship, and seems to think that the way to go is to have residential developers take over and let them deal with any maintenances costs. Although Durst vehemently opposed that plan, calling it unrealistic, his departure means that it's the most likely one moving forward. And it appears that there is no love lost between Durst and the trust, as a source told the Observer, "[Durst is] taking his ball and going home," later adding, "Now with Douglas out of the way, the trust can start to work cohesively on fixing this pier." We'll see.
· Sinking Pier 40: Durst Leaves Hudson River Park Amid Mutiny Over Its Future [Observer]
· Pier 40 coverage [Curbed]
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