LOWER EAST SIDE — A community garden that was threatened by development has been designated as a permanent green space by the city.
Siempre Verde Garden was one of 34 temporary community gardens citywide whose land was recently transferred to the Parks Department from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, which lets members control their gardens on an interim basis.
The gardens will be supported by the Parks Department’s GreenThumb Program, according to the agency and 596 Acres, an advocacy group that has been fighting to save the spaces.
“I’m just thrilled,” said Wendy Brawer, one of Siempre Verde’s founding members. “The garden is such a special place and now we know it’ll always be there.”
Members began an effort to preserve the garden last year after they found out a developer had planned to acquire the garden’s plots to build a 16-unit building that would include three affordable housing units, according to the Lo-Down, which first reported Siempre Verde’s new status.
An online petition launched in September 2014 received about 1,000 signatures in support of the garden, according to Change.org, where the petition was launched. Community Board 3 also sided with the garden, saying the tiny number of affordable units did not justify destroying the neighborhood green space, located at Stanton and Attorney streets, according to reports.
“It’s really gratifying for us,” said Brawer, who added members could start looking forward to future plans for the garden, like its participation in the upcoming Gardens Rising study to explore and implement the best practices for storm water capture.
Funded through a $2 million grant from the state, Siempre Verde will be one of 47 gardens in the Lower East Side and East Village participating in the study, she said.
“Thinking about our garden, it’s a different story than it was 48 hours ago,” Brawer said. “It’s really delightful to start thinking of the future of the garden in a holistic way.”
