Gardeners voice support at City Planning Commission hearing

by emily leshner

Several gardeners showed up to voice their support for the acquisition of the Maple Street Community Garden by the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation at a City Planning Commission hearing on Wednesday.

The acquisition was proposed by NYC Department of Parks & Recreation project planner Kelsey Wickel, and appeared to be well-received by the commission. Commissioners asked Wickel only a few minor questions, including if the garden's members had discussed ways to delineate the vegetable and composting areas from the recreational space. The relatively light questioning was in sharp contrast to the questioning during the preceding hearings, many of which were for new development projects.

Members of the Maple Street Community Garden speak in support of a proposal for the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation to acquire the space during a City Planning Commission hearing at Spector Hall in Manhattan, Wednesday, June 21, 2017. (Photo composition by 596 Acres)

After the proposal, Mara Kravitz of 596 Acres spoke of the strong support the garden had received from her organization as well as from locally elected officials like New York Senator Jesse Hamilton, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and District 40 Councilmember Mathieu Eugene.

Kravitz's remarks were followed by testimony from at least seven of the garden's members, a show of support that multiple commissioners asserted was impressive. The Committee Chair, Marisa Lago, even mentioned her own love of gardening.

The hearing was the first step in the voting phase of the Uniform Land Review Use Procedure (ULURP). The commission now has 60 days to rule on the proposal. If they vote favorably, the proposal moves to a public hearing at City Council.

If you'd like to let the City Planning Commission how much the garden means to you, there's still time. Just fill out this short form online; City Planning Commission staffers review online submissions every Friday.