Fort Greene Park Restoration
In April of 2019, the City Club joined with Friends of Fort Greene Park, the Sierra Club, and Brooklyn neighbors in filing a petition with the New York State Supreme Court to stop the redesign of the historic park and demand that the City follow legally required procedures by conducting an Environmental Impact Study. Parks officials had classified plans to redesign the green space's nearly eight acres as routine maintenance and accessibility upgrades. By using this classification, the Parks Department sidestepped established procedural protections designed to protect green spaces from unjustified negative impacts. The court ruled that the Parks department was required to clarify its decision to categorize its plans as minor maintenance and repairs.
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The proposal: As part of the Parks Without Borders program, NYC Parks Department introduced a plan in 2019 to reconstruct the iconic park designed by Olmsted and Vaux. Park paths, staircases, and entrances would be reconstructed. The plan included extensive updates to drainage features, and grading work. Renovations would include cutting down 83 trees, paving over green areas to create a plaza, sidewalk replacement, reconstruction of a basketball court, and expansion of an adult fitness area. Landscape architect A.E. Bye's cobblestone and grassy mounds would be removed to create a level, paved pathway.
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Parks Department Classification: The work was classified as a Type II project, which would not require an environmental study. Type II actions are those actions that are specifically listed in the regulations, and that are of such minor impact, that no further action under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) needs to be undertaken. For example, maintenance or repair involving no substantial changes in an existing structure or facility would be considered a Type II action.
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City Club Advocacy: In line with the City Club's mission to support transparency in local government, our organization worked with the Friends of Fort Greene Park to obtain documentation critical to assessing the Parks Department's classification of the reconstruction plans in Fort Green Park. We began with a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request to obtain a copy of the Parks Department report including the quantity, quality and reason for tree removal. The report we received was heavily redacted, undermining our ability to assess its compliance with the standards for project classification.
Undeterred, we sought court intervention and succeeded in obtaining the unredacted report.
​The full report revealed discrepancies between the Parks Department's stated basis for removing trees at public hearings and the findings of the agency's own forestry report. While the Parks Department represented that the trees to be removed were invasive or in poor health, this was not a finding in the forestry report. In addition, Parks and Recreation documents state that the trees were to be removed for design purposes- in service of creating a plaza. The City Club is proud of its work as a watchdog for procedural integrity and transparency in New York City, particularly focusing on issues of development which affect quality of life and historic preservation.
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Stay informed as the community continues to advocate for the NYC Parks Department to make ecologically sound decisions for maintenance of Fort Greene Park.
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Fort Greene Park: Advocacy in the News​
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​Group of Residents sue Fort Green Parks Department in hopes of saving green space.
NEWS 12 NY, 2019
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Fort Greene Park Report Shows City Ignored Architect's Advice
BY ANNA QUINN, June 13, 2019
The city was forced by two court rulings to release the architect's 162-page report after it initially redacted one third of the documents... read the full article from The Patch.
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NYC ‘Parks Without Borders’ program draws controversy
BY KENDRA HURLEY, October 15, 2019
A group of Brooklyn activists have been telling the media, elected officials, and most recently a Manhattan judge that their borough’s beloved Fort Greene Park… read the full article from City & State New York.
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Fort Greene Park Redesign Moves Forward as Local Activists Seek Answers
BY KEVIN DUGGAN, September 14, 2020
A group of residents that has twice sued the city for a controversial makeover of Fort Greene Park is seeking answers about the future of the green space as officials keep mum despite seemingly moving forward with the embattled scheme...read the full article from The Brownstoner.​​