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By: Hellen Zaboulani
For many years, a large plot of land beneath the Brooklyn Bridge had been closed off and hidden. Now, after 15 years, the space has been reopened to the public — giving one of the New York City’s most crowded neighborhoods some much needed greenspace.
As reported by the NY Post, the 15,000-square-foot plot of land in Lower Manhattan is part of a larger area known as “The Arches”. The city’s transportation department has been renovating and restoring this area, after previously having set it aside as a yard for crews cleaning the Brooklyn Bridge. The space, which had long been used as a construction staging site, spans about a third of an acre between Park Row and Rose Street. Locals will now gain access to the area, as well as its shade trees such as oaks, elms and Japanese pagoda trees, the city said. The area will also be fitted with 16 park benches, many of which will have great views of the bridge.
“Public space in Manhattan is precious — every acre counts for the people who live, work in, and visit our bustling metropolis,” Meera Joshi, the city’s deputy mayor for operations, said in a statement on Monday. “While we have miles to go to complete our whole vision for this area, we are also grateful to be able to celebrate the wins and welcome New York to an area too long cordoned off, a new refuge for fun and relaxation.”
“We’ve been advocating to open this space up — really hard,” said Rosa Chang, president and co-founder of nonprofit Gotham Park, which takes care of the area. “And the city agreed and moved shockingly fast.” As she and other volunteers planted daffodils in the space, she said the new spot will bring some much-needed green to the area. “We’re really thankful because the city — once we were able to get in touch with them — did acknowledge the total lack of open space here,” she continued. “And they have worked really, really fast.” Chang added, “Now instead of going around and around — you’ll now be able to cut through [the park].”
Per the Post, the newly opened slice of greenspace still has barricades blocking off about half the area, as of Monday. Still, residents said they were overjoyed about the long-lost space. “I remember when this place was open before — before it was shut down,
before 9/11 – it’s now an enormous barrier for people getting across this part of town,” said Roman Vinoly, 53, who lives in Tribeca. “For it to be reopened and re-injected with life, for it to have the kind of vibrancy this neighborhood used to have historically,
for that to be restored — it’s going to be an enormous tonic for Chinatown, the Financial District, the City Center area and for South Street Seaport.” He added, “It’s huge for the community.”
Last year, in honor of the Brooklyn Bridge’s 140th anniversary, Mayor Eric Adams had opened other parts of “the Arches” up for the public, including an area which connects the bridge to nearby Chinatown.
“For the last decade, NYC DOT crews have worked hard to restore the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, creating a cleaner, brighter, and safer bridge to last us another century,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez.
