Cooperator Joseph Hanania has opened an online petition at change.org for safer pedestrian access to East River Park from Grand Street.

You can read the full petition and sign it here.

Hanania points out that with three bus lines terminating at Grand & FDR, it’s important to make sure that getting over the FDR to East River Park is more accessible and safer than it is now.

Hanania attended the community workshop on Thursday and was instrumental in encouraging local support of an East River Ferry stop at Grand Street. He writes:

Urban designers have proposed an imaginative solution to resolve this, moving the Delancey overpass south while having two entrances cityside – one on Delancey, the other via a staircase towards Grand. And yet, a vocal minority of local residents are pushing against this – on the grounds that the Grand St. approach lessens the safety of nearby residents by making the area less accessible to ambulances and fire trucks.

We do not believe that the choice is either-or. We also believe that eliminating the Grand Street approach would make the area less safe — not more so. We thus request an approach to the park from Grand St., which would also accommodate emergency access. This would better serve the population of New York City, as well as the immediate community.

If you agree, add your name.