The completion of the first phase of a $19 million construction project in Yonkers was marked recently by the ceremonial opening of the newly uncovered Saw Mill River at downtown Larkin Plaza.
Water from the Saw Mill, which since the 1920s has flowed through an underground flume before emptying into the Hudson River, has been diverted into an open channel at a new public park near the Yonkers Metro-North Railroad station. The project created 2 acres of new parkland and 2 acres of waterfront around the Saw Mill and included improved flood control and environmental cleanup measures.
“This is an historic day for our city,” Yonkers Mayor Philip Amicone said at the Dec. 6 ceremony attended by more than 300 people. “Today we officially give the Saw Mill River ”“ the river this city was literally built around ”“ back to the people of Yonkers.”
The city”™s New Jersey-based contractor, Paulus Sokolowski & Sartor Engineering, began work on the “daylighting” project in December 2010. Landscaping and public amenities will be installed in the project”™s second phase in spring 2012.
City officials long have touted the Saw Mill daylighting project and its public park and riverwalk as a catalyst for private development, tourism and job creation in the downtown area.
