The Lower East Side Ecology Center will be headquartered in Seward Park's Park House until the completion of the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project.

EAST RIVER PARK CLOSURE BRINGS CHANGES

The past couple of months have brought many changes to our neighborhood parks. Despite community protest, the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project (ESCR) launched in early December, and will eventually close off access to the 57-acre East River Park through 2026. The $1.45 billion project is designed to protect the East Side of Manhattan by raising the park area to offset the devastating effects of climate change, including severe flooding from intense storms.

However, the current reality of the project is a loss that includes tennis courts, baseball fields, and the historic amphitheater and birthplace of Joseph Papp’s Shakespeare in the Park. Chainsaws also took down nearly a thousand cherry and London Plane trees, some more than 80 years old.

Corlears Hook Park will also absorb some loss, which includes the potential removal of the pedestrian bridge linking the two parks and dozens of trees. And while we are happy we can host our friends at the Lower East Side Ecology Center in Seward Park’s own Park House, we are equally saddened they’ve lost their beloved headquarters and had to move their popular compost yard.

We hope you’ll welcome the Lower East Side Ecology Center to Seward Park, and the wonderful work and programming they provide. And keep an eye out for an increase in birds, squirrels and pollinators who may be searching for a new home.

 

DID YOU KNOW?

Skimmia japonica, or Japanese Skimmia.

Without the lush green canopy overhead and flower beds filled with colorful blooms, it may seem like Seward Park has gone to sleep for the winter. However, many of our plants actually thrive in the colder months! Our Japanese Skimmia shrubs, bushes with rich green leaves and glossy red berries, can be found brightening up the park’s southwest corner, while pops of Christmas Roses, a perennial with delicate white and pink-tinged flowers, have bloomed all over. We aren’t far off from bulb season, but our evergreen plants help keep Seward Park looking its very best in the meantime!

 

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT

Our friends at Think!Chinatown recently produced “Chinatown Shopping,” a video series highlighting local community members and small businesses. We especially loved the video featuring MeeMee — not only does she teach us about Cantonese cooking and introduce us to some of her favorite spots in Chinatown, but we also get to see her practicing sword skills in Seward Park! You can check out MeeMee’s video and the entire series at www.thinkchinatown.org/shopping.

 

"Guardian Xianchan" by Think!Chinatown's resident lantern artist Jia Sung.

AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Happy Lunar New Year! We send joyous greetings to everyone celebrating and wish you a new year filled with happiness and peace.

  • The Museum of Chinese in America is hosting a week-long virtual Lunar New Year Family Festival to celebrate the Year of the Tiger. Virtual offerings include arts and crafts, dumpling-making, and ribbon dancing demonstrations. Programs are free but some require advanced registration. February 4 - February 11.
  • Think!Chinatown is hosting their Lunar New Year party at South Street Seaport on Saturday, February 5, 1:00pm - 4:00pm. The party will feature music, crafting demonstrations, art installations, and traditional decorations and goods for sale.
  • Welcome to Chinatown and the New York Chinese FreeMasons Athletic Club are bringing free lion dances to Chinatown to highlight local businesses and restaurants. The colorful lion dance troupes, accompanied by drums and cymbals, visit different businesses to chase away evil spirits and bring luck and prosperity. Saturday, February 5, 12:00pm - 1:00pm and Friday, February 11, 6:00pm - 7:00pm.
  • Chinatown’s biggest day of the year, Super Saturday, will be on Saturday, February 12, 10:30am - 5:00pm. Dozens of lion dance companies will be parading through the streets to bring fortune and ward off evil from the community. Think!Chinatown will also be hosting their Super Saturday block party, featuring Artist in Resident Jia Sung’s Tiger Lantern, “Guardian Xianchan.”
  • The annual Lunar New Year Parade starts at 1:00pm on Sunday, February 22, beginning on Mott & Canal. The accompanying festival will be 12:00pm - 4:00pm in Kimlau Square.
 
 
 

Seward Park Conservancy | PO Box 840 New York New York 10002 | info@sewardparkconservancy.org

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