As an alternative proposal to the projected plans of Riker’s Island post-decommission, this project guides the degredation of the landscape and select buildings, as well as reassemble infrastructure to expand the current and past practices of composting and a tree nursery. Strategic degredation of the island guides Riker’s towards its original footprint, as well as creates an expanded salt marsh habitat. Slow destruction of buildings within the projected floodplane prevents contamination of the East River. The composting system is expanded to the bays of of prison cells, as they provide the right dimension and conditions for an aerated static pile system. This expansion accomodates the processing of the expanded municipal compost system in the Bronx, and provides earth for the nursery, island plantings, and city-wide tree plantings.
In the alteration and destruction of the prison bays, salvageable materials, such as windows, fences, and metal hoops, are collected and repurposed for the construction of a greenhouse (windows), quonset transplant center (metal hoops), and vertical vegetation propogation and growth (fences).
The built proposal includes a nursery center, repurposed from the central structure of Rose Singer Center, a waste reception and processing center, repurposed from the central structure of George Motchen detention center, and a barge/reception port supported through stabilization through the planting of trees and erection of fences/walls.
The plan looks forwards and backwards, as the regeneration of composting and nursery production and the removal of buildings and easing of land mass reflects the past of the island.
