LONG ISLAND CITY — A group of residents in Dutch Kills are planning to turn an empty fenced-in lot on 29th Street into a community garden and gathering spot.
The green space, to be dubbed the Windmill Community Garden, is planned for a 2,500-square-foot space between 39th and 40th avenues — a city-owned lot that once held a crumbling building but now sits vacant, local resident Jean Cawley said.
"It was owned by HPD and the community kind of was wondering what was going to happen to it. [We thought] 'Hey, maybe this could become a community garden," said Cawley, one of the organizers behind the project.
She and husband Dominic Stiller — who own the bar Dutch Kills Centraal just down the block from the lot — teamed up with the art organization Flux Factory across the street as well as with the nearby Growing Up Green Charter School.
After reaching out to the city and local elected officials, the group was granted a license agreement in December to use the the land under the Parks Department's GreenThumb program.
They plan to start transforming the space this spring and summer, and envision a park that the neighborhood can use to "sit and relax and talk," and even host community events, Cawley said.
"Dutch Kills really needs green space," she said. "This is going to help a little bit. It's not huge, but it's something."
The hope is to build garden beds in the back of the lot where local school children can grow plants and vegetables, Cawley said.
And Flux Factory — which has hosted art exhibits in other community gardens in the past — wants to use the site for public programs and workshops to engage with more of its neighbors.
"Somehow having things outdoors really helps break down the figurative walls," said the group's director, Nat Roe. "The opportunity to collaborate on this garden is very much in line with our mission of having the arts as a centerpiece for a good neighborhood."
Once it's up and running, the garden will be open to the public during certain hours, and the group is also looking for new members. Those interested in getting involved can visit the Windmill Community Garden Facebook page.
