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Stalled Construction Site Becomes Lush Urban Farm
By
John Del Signore
Published Aug 3, 2011
Modified Aug 3, 2011
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By
John Del Signore
Published Aug 3, 2011
Modified Aug 3, 2011
Share
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A stone's throw from the FDR, a stalled construction site has been put to good use as a lush farm growing produce for Tom Colicchio's restaurant Riverpark, on East 29th Street. In operation since last month, the farm is currently boasting over 100 different types of vegetables, herbs, and flowers, and yielding dozens of varieties of fresh produce for the restaurant. Most of the plants began their life at Wilklow Orchards in the Hudson Valley and were shipped down to the garden, which is built on a series of movable milk crates.
Currently a construction fence blocks off the site from public view, but next month the fence will come down, when the garden will also host private chef's table dinners. To create the garden, Riverpark partnered with the Alexandria Center for Life Science, which owns the property, where construction was temporarily suspended "due to the unprecedented worldwide financial crisis of recent years." As of last month, there were over 600 stalled construction sites reported by the New York City Department of Buildings, so its great to see at least one of them being put to good use.
And if the fumes from the nearby FDR give you pause, the farm's adviser, Michael Robertson of Grady's Farm upstate, tells Grub Street the greens are harvested at "no more than four days old, so they're baby greens ... we're not just growing willy-nilly." He adds, "Being so close to the river, we get a good amount of wind. It’s a lot of fresh air, circulation of air." There are over 6,000 plants currently growing on 15,000 square feet of garden, which will remain in operation at least through next spring.
Tagged
Alexandria Center for Life Science
riverpark
tom colicchio
urban gardens
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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