“From coastal resiliency and sustainable green practices to the preservation of affordable housing, world-class public art, and vibrant, year-round programming in award-winning public spaces, Battery Park City leads the way in many of the measures that makes cities livable."
BPC Parks Happenings is a monthly “snapshot” of the Authority’s work in maintaining Battery Park City’s parks and public spaces. Scroll down to see what’s on for July!
– Urban Oasis: Unlocked: Wagner Park is re-opening on Tuesday, July 29 and we’re getting everything ready for the big day! Although you may not see it, our team is hard at work on:
o Training for new systems such as smart irrigation systems, the cistern, lighting, and mechanical components;
o Moving tools and equipment into the storage area of the Pavilion;
o Stocking the closets with needed restroom supplies;
o Identifying locations for waste receptacle placement, such as landfill, recycling, and compost;
o Planning closely with BPCA’s Programming team on event coordination
– Right On Cue: The resurfaced pool tables in Rockefeller Park are installed and ready for play.
– Dog Days of Summer: The Sirius Dog Run now has a working water feature that sprays water, and a new hose wheel will be installed. Caution should continue to be taken when reeling the hose in and out.
– Bright Idea: Light poles removed at Belvedere Plaza, River Terrace, and Warren Street for the upcoming resiliency work will be replaced.
– Little Bug, Big Problem: Spotted Lanternfly traps will be installed in select trees proven to have large numbers of the invasive bugs based on year’s past. This will monitor and capture spotted lanternflies in their nymph stage before they reach adulthood. If you see Spotted Lanternfly in the parks, please report it through the iNaturalist app!
– Wet My Plants: Watering of hanging baskets and newly-planted trees is occurring thrice weekly to ensure optimal plant health.
– Practice Makes Perfect: Practice deployment exercises will be performed on the BPC Ball Fields, the Robert R. Douglass Bridge, and 75 Battery Place. These exercises help test and identify required maintenance, if any.
– Hope Flies: We will be holding a live virtual information session about what to do when you encounter an injured bird in BPC on July 16. You can RSVP here. Can’t make it to the live session? That’s ok, click here and we can send you a recording of the webinar.
– Helping Hands: Battery Park City Authority Horticulture team is looking for volunteers who would like to join us in completing gardening tasks like weeding, watering, and deadheading of plants. Please reach out to info.bpc@bpca.ny.gov for a volunteer application and more info
– Soil mates: With residential buildings now composting through New York City’s Department of Sanitation (DSNY), BPCA has relocated its own compost bins to capture food waste in the parks. Based on past waste audits, around 10% of the waste thrown in our landfill cans is food waste.
– Order Ahead: Plant orders for spring 2026 flowering bulbs will be placed to ensure we have them for the fall planting.
– On The Lookout: As always, we appreciate your feedback when you see something in the parks! Please share what you see and experience with info.bpc@bpca.ny.gov.
Sustainability at BPCA
o In May we composted 6,302.5 lbs. of food waste and 58.5 lbs. of dog waste from the community;
o Please remember to use our green compost bins to discard your food waste. And if you’re walking along the South Esplanade or in one of our three dog runs, help BPCA reach zero waste by composting your dog waste;
o Our Path to Zero! As a decades-long leader in sustainability, BPCA is striving to divert 90% of what is sent to landfill! To continue helping toward our Zero Waste goal, we ask that you rethink what you throw away in the parks, and please recycle or compost items.
