Brooklyn Bridge a celebratory banquet at his house on the day of the bridge opening. Further festivity included the performance of a band, gunfire from ships, and a fireworks display. Since the New York and Brooklyn Bridge was the only one across the East River at that time, it was also called East River Bridge. On that first day, a total of 1,800 vehicles and 150,300 people crossed what was then the only land passage between Manhattan and Brooklyn. Emily Warren Roebling was the first to cross the bridge. The bridge's main span over the East River is 1,595 feet 6 inches
Brooklyn Bridge Park threshold connecting the city and the East River. “We realized this park wasn’t about scenery,” Van Valkenburgh said, “The nature of this park is the river.” Pier 1 was the first section of parkland opened in March 2010. The pier is Brooklyn Bridge Park's largest and is the only one constructed on a landfill, rather than a pile-supported structure. The area includes two landscaped lawns overlooking the Brooklyn Bridge and New York Harbor, a native salt marsh, a waterfront promenade, a granite prospect, a playground, and concessionaires. Two development sites, slated to contain a 200-room hotel, 159 residential units, as