Architects unveil waterfront vision.

A group of six leading landscape architects this week unveiled their vision to develop Midtown's inaccessible East River waterfront,.

The team took part in an intensive day-long design workshop, known as a charrette, organized by the Municipal Art Society, City Council member Dan Garodnick and Manhattan's Community Board 6.

The landscape architects included Ken Smith, designer of the rooftop garden at the Museum of Modern Art and the elevated plaza at 55 Water Street; Ricardo Scofidio, designer of the High Line and the redevelopment of Lincoln Center; Matthew Urbanski, designer of Brooklyn Bridge Park; Margie Ruddick, designer of improvements to Queens Plaza and a master plan for downtown Trenton; Kate Orff, a principal at SCAPE Studio and a prot6g6 of Rem Koolhaas; and Brian Jencek, a principal at Hargreaves Associates.

The charrette was organized because Manhattan has a rare opportunity to open up public access to Midtown's East River waterfront, create a new park and complete a greenway connecting the Battery to Harlem.

The state is planning to rebuild the midtown section of FDR Drive, the former Con Ed power plant site is being redeveloped, and the city is planning to facilitate the expansion of the United Nations campus and create an adjacent waterfront esplanade. The charrette explored how the projects could be planned together and result in an open waterfront from 34th Street to 63rd Street. Representatives from the state's Department of Transportation, the city's Department of Parks and Recreation and East River Realty Company, LLC --the developer of the former Con Ed site--participated in the charrette briefing.