As rain clouds parted over the City of Beacon on the afternoon of Saturday, Oct. 27, a small crowd gathered on an unassuming boardwalk of pale gray steel. They had come to celebrate the inauguration of Beacon Point, the riverfront walkway created by artist George Trakas.
On its far end, the terraced deck angles down to slippery rocks that line the riverbed. Every 28 days during high tide, water tunnels through a recessed inner canal separating eastern and western spheres of the boardwalk.
Trakas said the canal represented a “dia,” the Greek word for “passage through.”
“It very much embodies the metaphor and symbol of what Dia (Beacon) has done for the community and for artists’ lives,” said Trakas.
The project was created at the behest of Dia Art Foundation, owner of contemporary art museum Dia:Beacon, and the environmental group Scenic Hudson. The two organizations engaged Trakas for the shoreline project in 1999. Eight years later, Trakas’ boardwalk is complete, though work continues on the parcel, which belongs to Scenic Hudson.
“The Beacon Point project emerged during the early stages of conception of Dia:Beacon as a museum,” said Jeffrey Weiss, director of the Dia Art Foundation, during prepared remarks at the event. “Dia recognized the importance of access to the Hudson River” – interests that dovetailed with those of Scenic Hudson, Weiss said.
Trakas is known for subtle artworks that integrate sculpture, design and architecture in public spaces. On a cloudy day, the structure blends with the colors of water and sky. Built atop an old bulkhead where people come to fish, it takes wooden posts – now encased in steel – from that design.
At various times in its history, Long Dock Peninsula has been home to an oil port, junkyard and railyard, but never was it an all-natural environment. The peninsula is manmade, and with its bulkhead dilapidating, soils have eroded. Trakas’ work helps stabilize the shore. “We’re not in a truly natural place,” said Scenic Hudson senior vice president Steve Rosenberg. The peninsula “was created by people with fill. Nature was taking it back,” said Rosenberg, likening the project to “capping a tooth that was decaying and that we were going to lose altogether.”
All told, the site still looks modest. (“This is it?” asked one guest who had wandered down to the festivities out of curiosity.) The 16-acre parcel has yet to be gussied up as a park, A giant billboard fronts the water. But now that Trakas’ deck is complete, efforts turn immediately to the park – workers will haul in two feet of soil, plant new trees and add benches. An eco-friendly hotel and conference center by developer Foss Group Beacon is also underway on the parcel.
Revitalization
While Beacon’s waterfront has been the focus of revitalization efforts the city’s Main Street has also transformed rapidly over the past several years. Dia:Beacon, which features artworks from the 1960s to the present, opened its doors in a former Nabisco box-printing facility in 2003, drawing throngs of visitors on the train from New York City. According to a MetroNorth spokesperson, the museum of contemporary art is the second-most popular attraction among “getaway” packages that offer discounted train fare and admission. (Rye Playland is No. 1.)
“People come to visit Dia and then come up to Main Street. It’s been such an important part of our revitalization,” said Beacon Mayor Clara Lou Gould, who has held the post for 18 years.
“The city had definitely lost manufacturing jobs, and now it’s really vibrant,” said Nancy Lutz, spokeswoman for Dutchess County Tourism. “There are a number of restaurants, many art galleries and also Hudson Beach Glass,” she said, citing the popular retailer of artisan wares. “(It’s) not only a place for residents to go, but the retail aspect definitely attracts tourists, especially from the New York City metro area,” she said.
While the hotel and conference center are expected to further the economy, Gould emphasized the importance of a riverfront park that the entire community can use. “People love to get down to the river. It’s very important that they have the hotel and business center, but it’s also important that they have the park for people to enjoy. They won’t be excluded; it won’t just be for the hotel,” she said.