FROM THE GROUND UP II

The document is a supplemental petition by Earthjustice and the New York City Community Garden Coalition (NYCCGC) requesting that New York City agencies designate community gardens as Critical Environmental Areas (CEAs). It argues that these gardens provide essential services in underserved areas, including food security, flood resiliency, and mitigation of extreme heat. The petition highlights ten specific gardens as examples of these benefits and requests a city-wide assessment of all community gardens on City-owned land to ensure their legal protection against development projects.

• A significant majority of New York City's community gardens are located in areas with below-average access to public parks. Specifically, 89 percent of the 453 community gardens on City-owned land are in community districts that fall below the average of 1.8 acres of parkland per 1,000 residents.
• Community gardens address food insecurity and economic burdens, particularly for rent-burdened households. For example, the Dorothy K. McGowan Memorial Garden in Washington Heights operates a food delivery program providing fresh food to over twenty neighbors in need.
• Community gardens provide critical green infrastructure that helps mitigate urban flooding. The Walt L. Shamel Community Garden in Brooklyn utilizes rainwater harvesting to divert water from the sewer system, reducing flooding risks during heavy rain events.
• Urban greenspaces like community gardens are essential for mitigating extreme heat, which disproportionately affects communities of color. The document notes that temperatures in predominantly non-white areas, such as East Harlem and the South Bronx, can be significantly higher than in predominantly white areas like near Central Park.
• Community gardens are currently threatened by development projects. Examples include the Pleasant Village Community Garden in East Harlem, the Elizabeth Street Garden in SoHo, and LaGuardia Corner Gardens, which faces potential closure due to New York University's expansion plans.
• The petitioners request three specific actions: the designation of named gardens as CEAs by December 14, 2022; a GreenThumb assessment of all remaining City-owned gardens by June 14, 2023; and the subsequent CEA designation of all qualifying gardens by the same date.
• The document argues that CEA designation does not conflict with affordable housing goals, suggesting that high-density development without adequate green space can intensify the urban heat island effect.

APA

Earthjustice (2022). FROM THE GROUND UP II. https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/nyc-cmty-garden-supp_09-2022.pdf

Chicago

Earthjustice. FROM THE GROUND UP II. 2022. https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/nyc-cmty-garden-supp_09-2022.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Earthjustice |title=FROM THE GROUND UP II |date=September 2022 |url=https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/nyc-cmty-garden-supp_09-2022.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{earthjustice2022from, author = {{Earthjustice}}, title = {{FROM THE GROUND UP II}}, institution = {Earthjustice}, year = {2022}, month = sep, url = {https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/nyc-cmty-garden-supp_09-2022.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }