2018 Year in Review
Thank you for being part of the driving force that keeps Prospect Park green and vibrant. Through the support of our members, volunteers, donors and advocates in 2018, Prospect Park Alliance has accomplished so much in our work to sustain, restore and advance Brooklyn’s Backyard for the diverse communities that call the borough home. This work is so important to our health and Brooklyn’s quality of life.
Below are just a few of the impressive accomplishments that were only possible through your support. In the coming year, we will continue our focus to ensure the park remains an open, accessible haven for all of Brooklyn’s communities to enjoy. The incredible growth of Brooklyn and resulting demands on the park from more than 10 million visits each year, and the challenges we face due to climate change and severe storms, makes this work more important than ever before, and we thank you for supporting our mission.
Caring for Brooklyn’s Natural Treasures
Prospect Park Alliance arborists, forestry technicians and volunteers provided 20,000 hours to care for the park’s 30,000 trees, 250 acres of woodlands and 60-acre lake. This year, we continued our restoration of woodland areas devastated by Hurricane Sandy and other severe storms, supported by a grant from New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Following the work of our green goats to clear invasive weeds, our Natural Resources Crew planted 11,827 native trees and plants on Lookout Hill. We also partnered with the Natural Areas Conservancy to release a 25-year plan to care for the city’s woodlands, which will serve as a guide for parks across the country.
Restoring the Park’s Historic Spaces
Prospect Park Alliance landscape architects and architects provided 11,377 hours to sustain this Brooklyn treasure. In 2018, the Alliance broke ground on the restoration of the Flatbush Avenue perimeter and unveiled our design of the first new entrances to the park since the 1940s. We also began construction of a new adult recreation area in the Prospect Park Parade Ground. The Alliance won a 2018 Award for Excellence in Design by the New York City Public Design Commission for the upcoming restoration of the Concert Grove Pavilion.The Alliance also released the results of its community outreach to create a new vision for the park’s historic Rose Garden.
Engaging the Community
Prospect Park Alliance served over 486,000 community members in free or low-cost recreation, education and public programs. In addition to programs at the Tennis Center, LeFrak Center at Lakeside, Carousel, Audubon Center and Lefferts Historic House, we partnered with community organizations to present the Brooklyn Roots Festival; Democracy Lab at Spacebuster; Prospect Park Yoga; and Summer Movies Under the Stars.
Sustaining the Park’s Landscapes
Prospect Park Alliance could not sustain the park without the important work of our horticulture, landscape management and maintenance crews. Alliance horticulturalists and our turf crew dedicated 4,700 hours to maintain more than 150 acres of lawns and playing fields, as well as 10 acres of beautifully landscaped entrances and gardens. In addition, more than 3,000 volunteers dedicated 18,000 hours of service working side-by-side with our crews to keep the park green and vibrant. Volunteers also tackled important improvement projects. Through the support of our corporate partners, volunteers helped us repaint the urns at Grand Army Plaza, and begin restoring the landscape at the Garfield Place entrance. In addition, through the support of our donors, the Alliance was able to supplement city crews to provide 2,000 additional hours of garbage clean up on busy summer weekends.
