
The Ford Amphitheater sits on the former site of a garden. Image Credit: Molly Kaszuba
City-owned land was used as an unlicensed community garden. The City of New York owns a parcel of real property at 3052 West 21st Street along the Coney Island Boardwalk. Between 1997 and 2004 the City licensed the site as community garden under the City’s “Green Thumb” program. In 1999 the City terminated the garden’s license in order to develop the site into a parking lot for a minor league baseball stadium. The City relicensed the garden in 2000 and 2003 following litigation stemming from the 1999 license termination. The City entered into a settlement agreement with the community garden in which the community garden expressly recognized that the site was not dedicated parkland. (read more…)