North Brooklyn community residents came out to 520 Kingsland Ave. for the first annual Kingsland Wildflowers Festival on a gorgeous Saturday afternoon in Greenpoint this past weekend. The event marked the public inauguration of the new green roof that will serve as a wildlife refuge and community space for educational programming.
Attendees enjoyed free food and beer from New York’s first organic beer maker, Smart Beer and musicians entertained the crowd of friends and family. The littlest Greenpointers (and future conservationists) danced, enjoyed educational activities, face painting and frolicking in the rooftop meadow. This new green space is an oasis in this industrial area that was at one time a rich ecological habitat. “That’s what this project is all about, greening Greenpoint,” said property owner Tony Argento.
This transformative project was the initiative of Greenpoint resident Marni Majorelle of Alive Structures, who came together with Kathryn Heintz of New York City Audubon and Tony Argento of Broadway Stages to bring this vision to life with support from The Greenpoint Community Environmental Fund (GCEF).
The site not only offers 10,000+ sq. ft. of new green space and amazing 360° views, but the wildflower meadow will become a haven for the wild birds in the area. Heintz will be partnering with Willis Elkins, Program Manager of Newtown Creek Alliance to track the patterns of these wild birds as they make their migration south in an effort to restore the wildlife of Newton Creek.
The space will continue to develop over the next three years offering community organizations and students a space to learn about the local ecology and conservation. The center is also looking to the community for input on programming. And a few other adjacent rooftops will begin their garden transformation early next year, with Kingsland Wildflowers eventually totalling 20k square feet of green space once completed.
Kingsland Wildflowers will be open to the public again on Saturday, October 8th for Nature and Joy: A New Defense of the Natural World, where Michael McCarthy will discuss his new book, ‘The Moth Snowstorm: Nature and Joy.’ A rooftop reception will begin at 5pm, followed by a discussion at 6pm.
Kingsland Wildflowers | 520 Kingsland Avenue, Greenpoint