Award recognizes projects that meet a variety of sustainability, equity, and quality of life criteria
New York (August 25, 2022) − The East Side Coastal Resiliency project, among the largest and most technically complex infrastructure projects in New York City’s history, has earned the prestigious and highly coveted Envision Gold Award for Sustainable Infrastructure from the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure. HNTB Corporation, through a joint venture with the LiRo Group, is providing project management, construction management, and environmental compliance and permitting on the ESCR project under a contract with the New York City Department of Design and Construction. The City project will reduce the risk of flooding from coastal storms and sea-level rise by creating a 2.4-mile-long flood barrier from Montgomery Street on Manhattan’s Lower East Side to the Asser Levy Playground at 25th Street.
The Envision award and rating system is a national standard for assessing sustainability on infrastructure projects. The Envision categories of quality of life, leadership, resource allocation, natural world, and climate and resilience collectively address areas of human wellbeing, mobility, community development, collaboration, planning, economy, materials, energy, water, siting, conservation, ecology, emissions, and resilience. HNTB honors the Envision program’s focus on collaborating and communicating around complex issues by bringing a truly diverse team of men and women, from various backgrounds and from varying disciplines to deliver a priority project that was included in the city’s official strategic plan from 2015 and was part of the original “Rebuild by Design” competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“We are honored that the ESCR project has received this recognition and that HNTB can be part of the efforts to improve access to open spaces for the communities along the waterfront,” said Michael Mangione, HNTB project executive.
Elements of the $1.45 billion climate resiliency project include a combination of raised parkland, floodwalls, floodgates, and various infrastructure improvements, such as modifications and additions to the existing combined sewer system. Construction of the project began in the Fall of 2020 and is expected to be complete on time in 2026. Once built, the ESCR project will provide improved coastal protection to more than 110,000 New Yorkers in this area through 2.4 miles of enhanced waterfront, ecology, and urban spaces.