The Garden Is Saved

By Joseph Reiver

THE VALUE OF COMMUNITY GARDENS GOES FAR BEYOND WHAT CAN BE EASILY MEASURED. Thanks to Councilmember Marte’s dedication and the support from Mayor Adams, we now have a resolution that delivers even more housing while preserving the garden. Photo credit: Elizabeth Street Garden.

I’ve spent the better part of my adult life knowing the Elizabeth Street Garden through times of uncertainty. In truth, after all these years I don’t quite know what it’s like to be here without the weight of a looming threat. But here I am, writing this under the gazebo on the evening of the summer solstice, knowing that Elizabeth Street Garden is saved.

Surreal to write those words, but then again, that a place like this exists in the middle of Manhattan is surreal — a gift whose potential loss was always a guiding reminder of gratitude for each moment spent surrounded by such beauty. Elizabeth Street Garden has always been beyond words for me, but I still try.

The garden has been misunderstood by those who believe it must be sacrificed to meet housing needs. But doing so perpetuates a false choice, one I hope we can now leave behind in light of what this work has affirmed. In our efforts to preserve Elizabeth Street Garden, we have always pursued a solution that provides affordable housing without any loss to the community. Thanks to Councilmember Marte’s dedication and the support from Mayor Adams, we now have a resolution that delivers even more housing while preserving the garden.

Through zoning actions at a privately owned site just two blocks away on the Bowery, a vacant city-owned property on Suffolk Street, and more affordable housing at 100 Gold Street, at least 623 new affordable units will be created in our district in addition to hundreds of more homes. With political will and community alignment, the review process for these developments could be significantly expedited. This is a rare opportunity for us to show how all of the involved parties can work together.

We are forever grateful to all of those who have supported the garden over the years. Thanks to Renee Green, Barry Ranganathan, April Valencia, Poppy King, and Patricia Squillari for leading the organization. Thanks to Norman Siegel, Steve Hyman, Oliver Chernin, Gabrielle Esposito, Goutam Jois, Elliott Meisel, and Osman Dennis for upholding the legal effort for over six years. Thanks to our many wholehearted volunteers and neighbors who continued to tend to the Garden even in the most uncertain times. We simply wouldn’t have made it here without you.

The value of community gardens goes far beyond what can be easily measured. They encompass wellness, resilience, and connection in ways quantification never fully seems to capture. And yet, these spaces are constantly at risk. It is my hope that our work sets a new precedent for how community gardens are valued and protected, moving beyond false choice politics toward solutions that honor all these spaces have to offer.

My father sowed the foundation of the garden, which, even through more than a decade of duress, has grown into an iconic sanctuary treasured by people from across the city and the world. It’s been a profound honor to expand upon that legacy, to trust in the path, and to listen to the garden as my guide. With the city now embracing our proposal, we remain fully devoted to ensuring that Elizabeth Street Garden is preserved in its entirety, with all of its enduring magic as we know and love in perpetuity.