NYC's Pier 57 To Get Major Makeover

The New York City Council has approved a deal with developers for a $200M makeover for the "crumbling" Pier 57, located just north of the West Village on the Hudson River. The cavernous site, which last year hosted an indoor version of NYC Pride's famed Pier Dance, will emerge from the renovations as a 100,000 square foot "retail, food, art, and cultural beacon" with a permanent outdoor venue for the Tribeca Film Festival on its roof. 

In return for sinking all that money into the pier, the developers will get a 49-year lease on the property from the Hudson River Trust, a jointly-run city and state group which operates the five mile long Hudson River Park along the west side of the island.  City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who has long been criticized as "being in the pocket" of major developers, is thrilled about the deal and tells the Daily News, "This will be pretty cool if I say so myself."

It does look cool, but it also sounds like an attempt to create a more hip version of the South Street Seaport, Manhattan's tourist trap on the East River. Construction on Pier 57 is scheduled to begin this October.