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NYC is working on becoming less of a concrete jungle.
This week, NYC Parks, NYC Department of Design and Construction (DDC) and city officials revealed 2.7 acres of new green space within The Bronx’s Starlight Park, located along the Bronx River.
The $41 million project added two new bridges that connect the east and west sides of the river to the new greenspaces and amenities, including paths, landscaping, sitting areas and a dog run.
It links to Starlight Park’s ballfields, playgrounds, boat launch, and the Bronx River House, a community educational facility and boat house.
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Finally, it closes what was a gap in the Bronx River Greenway. Before the project started, this area was a paved industrial property. The park itself sits on the former site of the Starlight Park amusement park that operated from 1920 to about 1940.
Now, New Yorkers can access the whole area easily and take in the beauty of the Bronx River, which itself has been rebounding in recent years. The city, state, and non-profit entities like the Bronx River Alliance have been doing extensive shoreline re-naturalization and wetlands work, according to a press release. To help with that, “significant” stormwater management features have also been added during this project.
Phase 1 of the project was completed all the way back in 2013 while Phase 2, the recently completed part, was done over the course of two separate capital projects beginning in October 2017.
Under both, Parks and DDC planted 140 new trees and about 12,000 new shrubs to support the shoreline and wetlands. They also installed new lighting, retaining walls and the dog run. They added 4,000 feet of new pathways and upgraded drainage and electrical utilities.
The DDC worked on the two new bridges—one goes over the Bronx River north of Westchester Avenue and the other goes over Amtrak railroad tracks at East 172nd Street.
DDC also built the Bronx River House in Starlight Park, where the Bronx River Alliance can operate and teach others with an environmental learning lab.
“The work that DDC completed in Starlight Park not only improves the park and the Bronx River but also serves to connect communities that long ago were divided by train lines and highways,” said NYC DDC Commissioner Thomas Foley in a statement. "In addition to closing a gap in the river's greenway, we also added new bridges spanning train lines and the river, plus better entry points into the park. Together, these help to bring together nearby neighborhoods that were previously cut off from one another. Together with the beautiful new Bronx River House, DDC has rebuilt large sections of Starlight Park and its surrounding natural areas."
You can read more about who was involved in the project at nycgovparks.org.