The transformation of a historic floating pier in New York City into a multi-million dollar mixed-use development on the Hudson River has been declared “tantalisingly close to being realised”.

Seth Pinsky, executive vice president at property firm RXR Realty, has revealed work will soon begin to realise the new 450,000sq ft (41,000sq m) “destination for New Yorkers and visitors alike.”

Speaking at an arts society summit in NYC, Pinsky announced that the first two floors of the structure – re-dubbed the SuperPier – will feature a ”world-class” 140,000sq ft (13,000sq m) food hall giving the city “the kind of large-scale public market that doesn't currently exist here.”

World-famous chef Anthony Bourdain has already unveiled himself as running the food zone, which will feature 100 different international stalls and wholesale food shops centred around an Asian-inspired night market.



Other exciting cultural elements to the SuperPier – which will receive US$350m (€328.m, £230m) in funding – include a 87,000sq ft (8,000sq m) outdoor space on the roof, which will boast a movie and performance amphitheatre hosting screenings for the Tribeca Film Festival. At other times of year it will be used as a public park, where people can “marvel at the pier’s unparalleled views in all directions.”

“Think of it as the very High Line,” said Pinsky, in reference to the popular public space created by James Corner Field Operations along an elevated railway line.

Additional space will host a marina and educational facilities, while plots will be leased to a myriad of retail, restaurant and lifestyle brands. According to Pinsky, around 250,000sq ft (23,200sq m) has already been allocated as office space for a “major technology company”, widely reported to be Google.

Construction will begin in early 2016, with work projected to be finished by 2018. The development is being funded by private capital and overseen by RXR and Young Woo & Associates. The duo have hired Handel Architects, LOT-EK Architecture & Design and landscape studio !melk to design the renovation.

Pier 57 was originally constructed in 1952 but has sat empty since 2003. It is supported by three flooded concrete boxes, each weighing 27,000 US tons.