AFTER DECADES OF DELAYS, MAYOR MAMDANI ANNOUNCES GREENPOINT’S BOX STREET PARK IS FINALLY UNDERWAY

Project will transform waterfront parking lot into 2.5 acres of new public green space with an esplanade, terraced seating, dog runs, native plantings, public restroom and more

NEW YORK - Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani, Parks Commissioner Tricia Shimamura and NYC Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) Commissioner Anthony Shorris today announced the start of construction on Box Street Park in Greenpoint, Brooklyn - delivering on a decades-old promise to transform a former parking lot into new public green space for North Brooklyn.

"Today, we are finally making good on a promise that Greenpoint families have been waiting decades to see fulfilled: turning a parking lot into a park," said Mayor Mamdani. "Box Street Park will give New Yorkers a place to walk, play, rest and gather along the water, with lush gardens, open green space and pathways connecting neighbors to the waterfront. And it is proof of what becomes possible when communities organize and government delivers."

"Our waterfront is one of our city's great natural resources, and this new park will give New Yorkers an accessible and welcoming place to connect with their natural environment and with their neighbors," said Parks Commissioner Tricia Shimamura. "This community never gave up on this park - and neither did we. This project is an important step toward delivering the greenspace and waterfront access that all New Yorkers deserve, and it builds on the work we're doing up and down the Greenpoint-Williamsburg waterfront."

"More than 20 years ago, Greenpointers were promised a new park on Commercial Street as part of the Williamsburg-Greenpoint waterfront upzoning. I've been fighting alongside neighbors ever since then to secure our desperately needed green space," said Council Member Lincoln Restler. "While we've built tens of thousands of new homes in our community in the intervening years, Box Street Park remained a broken promise. After years of relentless advocacy, I'm thrilled that we're finally breaking ground on this beautiful new multipurpose public park complete with lush greenery, waterfront seating, dog runs, a basketball court and a public bathroom. I'm thankful to all the neighbors who refused to give up on our promised park and to Mayor Mamdani for helping us get this done and showing that City Hall has Greenpoint's back."

The $40 million capital project will transform the former site of a Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) facility into a 2.5-acre public park along Newtown Creek. Construction is expected to be completed by the end of summer 2028.

The park will feature an elevated esplanade, ADA-accessible pathways, terraced granite seating, lush gardens, a green lawn, a basketball court, a picnic area, separate dog runs for small and large dogs and a public restroom.

Native plants will cool and clean the air while strengthening the site's resilience to extreme weather and creating habitat for local wildlife. Visitors will enjoy blackgum and Eastern redbud trees, colorful purple love grass and little bluestem grasses, and Virginia rose and seaside goldenrod shrubs and perennials.

"New Yorkers cherish our city's outdoor public spaces, and every community across the five boroughs deserves a high-quality park close to home," said NYCEDC President & CEO Anthony Shorris. "NYCEDC is thrilled to break ground on Box Street Park alongside our partners at NYC Parks and across city government, closing a key gap on the Brooklyn waterfront and delivering a new vibrant green space the Greenpoint community will enjoy for generations to come."

Once complete, the project will fill a critical gap along the waterfront at the northern tip of Greenpoint, connecting with waterfront esplanades to the east and west. The park will ultimately expand an additional 0.5 acres after the MTA's Emergency Response Unit (ERU) is relocated from the southeastern corner of the site.

The current 2.5-acre capital project is fully funded with $34.5 million from the Office of the Mayor - including a $2 million investment the Mamdani administration made in the September Capital Commitment Plan released this week, $500,000 from the City Council and approximately $5 million from local developers through air rights sales and private funds.

"For more than a decade, I've been proud to stand with Greenpoint residents and community leaders in the fight to make Box Street Park a reality," said Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez. "For years, this site has been a missing tooth in the string of waterfront parks promised as part of the 2005 rezoning. Now, this community will finally get the open space it was promised and a place for families and neighbors to gather for years to come. I'm thrilled that construction is moving forward and grateful to Mayor Mamdani, Council Member Restler and everyone who helped get us to this point."

"Greenpoint has some of the lowest park space per person in the city," said Assemblymember Emily Gallagher. "As our district has seen an explosion in development and population over the past two decades, the need for greenspace - which make our neighborhoods more livable and serve as places to build community - has only become more urgent. Though long overdue, I'm so excited that the city will finally begin construction on Box Street Park."

"Box Street Park has been part of the vision for a continuous Greenpoint-Williamsburg waterfront for more than twenty years, and today's groundbreaking is an important step toward realizing that promise," said Katie Denny Horowitz, Executive Director of the North Brooklyn Parks Alliance. "Throughout that time, this particular site has required extraordinary coordination across New York City and New York State, and we are grateful to Mayor Mamdani and Council Member Restler, alongside the elected officials, agency partners and community advocates who have remained committed to seeing this project through. With an accessible shoreline, new green space and a much-needed dog run, Box Street Park marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for northern Greenpoint, with major investments along Commercial Street still to come."

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