A half-acre of private shoreline in Throggs Neck, between the Throgs Neck Bridge and the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge, is on its way to becoming a community garden. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has awarded the Bronx Land Trust $2,150,000 to buy the 0.5-acre site and turn it into green space for the neighborhood.

According to the state's award list, the garden is meant for community gatherings, growing food and environmental education, and it is described as serving residents of both the Bronx and Queens, which makes sense for a lot that looks across the East River from the foot of two bridges.

Where the money comes from

The grant is part of the first round of the state's new Open Space Conservation Grant Program. DEC announced the round on Oct. 21: $25.17 million to 14 projects across New York, from forests and wetlands upstate to this single city parcel. The Throggs Neck award is the only one on the list in New York City.

The program is paid for by the 2022 Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, which voters approved, together with the state's Environmental Protection Fund. DEC says $100 million of Bond Act money has been set aside for the program in all, and that more funding rounds are expected. Its stated goals for the grants include expanding public access to shorelines and green space, cooling neighborhoods and easing flooding, and protecting land permanently.

Grants under the program run from a minimum of $50,000 to a maximum of $3.5 million, and they are open to land trusts, municipalities and community groups that want to buy and protect significant open space.

Who will run it

The Bronx Land Trust is a nonprofit that holds and supports community gardens across the borough. Its model is to help neighbors organize: the trust says it works to build leadership among gardeners so they can run their gardens and shape the future of their blocks. It also offers volunteer days and garden rentals, and keeps a directory of its gardens online.

A garden on the water is a different kind of site from the corner lots most community gardens occupy, and the state's description puts education alongside food growing, so a site that doubles as an outdoor classroom for local schools is part of the plan.

What happens next

The award pays for the purchase. Once the land is acquired, the work of clearing, grading and planting begins, and the design and the timeline will come from the trust and the neighbors who take part. Throggs Neck residents who want a say, or a plot, can sign up for the trust's newsletter or volunteer list now.

For anyone curious about the other 13 projects, DEC's announcement lists every award by region, with a short description of each property and what it will protect.

How to get involved

The Bronx Land Trust is based at 972 Sherman Avenue in the Bronx and can be reached at bronxlandtrust@gmail.com. Its website has a volunteer form, a newsletter sign-up and a map of the gardens it already looks after, which is the easiest way to see what this one could become.

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