About

In 2005, New York City’s rezoning of Williamsburg and Greenpoint mapped 28 acres of future waterfront parkland for a community that historically has severely lacked parks and open space. Community District One, which is comprised by Greenpoint and Williamsburg, currently ranks near the bottom of the list in open space per capita, with .6 acres per 1,000 residents. The City’s own Department of City Planning recommends a ratio of 2.5 acres per 1,000 residents and the citywide average is 3.5 acres per 1,000 residents.

Once realized, the proposed future park would extend from North 9th Street across the Bushwick Inlet to Quay Street, giving residents of Williamsburg and Greenpoint full access to the East River. The park vision includes a boat launch, a museum dedicated to the Civil War era battleship USS Monitor, picnic grounds, athletic fields, volleyball courts, wetland preserves, gardens, performance spaces, a dog run and a two mile bicycle and pedestrian path along the East River.

Although the promise for the park was explicit and much design phase work has been completed, the acquisition and development of the underlying parkland has been slow to materialize. At the time of the rezoning, six separate entities owned the 28 acres that comprise the park. To date, five years since the rezoning, the City has acquired only two of the six parcels and has begun development of only one of them. The remaining four parcels either await relocation of an existing business, are in legal limbo, or require the city to negotiate a purchase. You can find out more about each individual parcel here.

We need community participation to make our promised park a reality. Please join us – whether it’s to stay informed or get involved. There’s lots to do including outreach to our community, lobbying our public officials, planning events, fundraising and keeping this website as up to date and informative as possible. Let us know how you’d like to help and stay tuned for a separate page about specific volunteer needs. Together we can make a difference in transforming our community for the better.

Friends of Bushwick Inlet Park was conceived in 2007 as an outgrowth of Greenpoint Waterfront Association for Parks and Planning (GWAPP) Push for Parks. Friends of Bushwick Inlet Park works in conjunction with the Open Space Alliance for North Brooklyn (OSA).