Construction is now underway on Box Street Park, a 2.5-acre public park on the Newtown Creek waterfront at the northern tip of Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Crews began preparing the site this month, and the heavier work of demolition and excavation is scheduled to start in November. The city expects the park to be finished by the end of summer 2028.

The project turns a former parking lot, once the site of a Metropolitan Transportation Authority facility, into open green space along the creek. Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced the start of construction on October 1 alongside NYC Parks Commissioner Tricia Shimamura and the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), which is building the park with NYC Parks.

What the park will include

According to the city's announcement, the design calls for a mix of waterfront access, places to sit and space for active use. Planned features include:

  • An elevated esplanade along Newtown Creek
  • Accessible pathways that meet ADA standards
  • Terraced granite seating facing the water
  • Gardens and a central green lawn
  • A basketball court
  • A picnic area
  • Separate dog runs for small and large dogs
  • A public restroom

The planting plan uses native species. The city lists blackgum and Eastern redbud trees along with purple love grass, little bluestem, Virginia rose and seaside goldenrod. The plantings are meant to help cool and clean the air, hold up better in extreme weather and give birds and pollinators a place to live.

The park will also link up with the waterfront esplanades to its east and west, filling in a missing stretch of public shoreline. The North Brooklyn Parks Alliance, the nonprofit that supports parks in Greenpoint and Williamsburg, has described the groundbreaking as a step toward a continuous public waterfront running through both neighborhoods.

Cost and who is paying

The capital project costs $40 million, and the city says the current 2.5-acre phase is fully funded. The money breaks down this way:

  • $34.5 million from the Office of the Mayor, including $2 million added in the September Capital Commitment Plan
  • $500,000 from the City Council
  • About $5 million from local developers, raised through air rights sales and private funds

A second piece is planned

The park is set to grow by another half acre later on. The southeastern corner of the site is still occupied by the MTA's Emergency Response Unit, and once that unit relocates, the extra 0.5 acres will be added to the park, bringing the total to about three acres. Officials at the announcement said that second phase could break ground in roughly two years.

Why it took so long

Box Street Park was first promised to North Brooklyn more than 20 years ago. Because the land had been an MTA facility, turning it into parkland required years of coordination between city and state agencies before construction could begin.

Neighbors shaped the design along the way. At a 2018 NYC Parks design meeting, residents pushed back on an early plan centered on a soccer field and asked for a park that balanced quiet space with active use. Later versions of the plan added more direct access to the water in response to that input.

Where it is and how to get there

The park sits where Box Street meets the Newtown Creek shoreline, near Commercial Street. The closest subway stop is the G train at Greenpoint Avenue, roughly a 15-minute walk south. The B43 and B62 buses run along Manhattan Avenue a few blocks away, and the NYC Ferry's East River route stops at the Greenpoint landing on India Street.

For now the site is an active construction zone and is closed to the public. Neighbors can expect more equipment and activity on and around the site once demolition and excavation begin in November.

What happens next

Demolition and excavation start in November 2026, and the city is targeting completion of the 2.5-acre park by the end of summer 2028. Project updates are posted by NYC Parks and NYCEDC, and the North Brooklyn Parks Alliance shares news on North Brooklyn waterfront parks through its website.

Sources