Brooklyn Bridge Park
| Brooklyn Bridge Park | |
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View of Pier 1 with Manhattan and the Brooklyn Bridge in background
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| Type | Urban park |
| Location | 334 Furman Street Brooklyn Heights, NY 11201 United States |
| Coordinates | 40°41′51″N 73°59′57″W / 40.69750°N 73.99917°WCoordinates: 40°41′51″N 73°59′57″W / 40.69750°N 73.99917°W |
| Area | 85-acre (34 ha) |
| Created | 2008–present |
| Designer | Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc. |
| Operated by | Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation |
| Open | All year |
| Status | Partially open; unopened portion under construction |
| Website | www.BrooklynBridgePark.org |
Brooklyn Bridge Park is an 85-acre (34 ha) park on the Brooklyn side of the East River in New York City. The park has revitalized 1.3-mile (2.1 km) of Brooklyn's post-industrial waterfront from Atlantic Avenue in the south, under the Brooklyn Heights Promenade and past the Brooklyn Bridge, to Jay Street north of the Manhattan Bridge. The site includes Brooklyn Piers 1–6, the historic Fulton Ferry Landing, and the preexisting Empire–Fulton Ferry and Main Street Parks. Two Civil War-era structures, Empire Stores and the Tobacco Warehouse, will also be integrated into the park. After the city and state signed a joint agreement in 2002, site planning and project funding proceeded, with construction started in 2008 using land reclaimed using soil from the new World Trade Center site.
Brooklyn Bridge Park is overseen by Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation, a not-for-profit entity responsible for the planning, construction, maintenance, and operation of the park. The Corporation's mission is to "create and maintain a world class park that is a recreational, environmental and cultural destination enjoyed by residents of, and visitors to, New York City".
In 1642 the first ferry landing opened on the land that is now Brooklyn Bridge Park's Empire Fulton Ferry section. Soon after a thriving trading economy developed into a small town called "het Veer," meaning "the Ferry". As het Veer grew throughout the 17th century, it became known as the "Road to the Ferry".
On August 29, 1776, het Veer served as a crucial strategic location for George Washington and the Continental Army in the American Revolution's Battle of Long Island. In the middle of the night, George Washington and his men evaded the British Army, who were quickly gaining upon the Continental Army, by escaping across the East River to Manhattan.
As the 18th century came to a close, additional ferry services were added to this waterfront community, including docking points for the "Catherine Street Ferry" and the first steamboat ferry landing that was created by Robert Fulton, which eventually became known as the Fulton Ferry Landing. The community continued to grow into the 19th century as Brooklyn Heights developed into a residential neighborhood. By the 1850s, Brooklyn City Railroad rail lines were installed at the Fulton Ferry Landing. During this boom period, brick warehouse development proliferated along the waterfront. In fact, the area soon became known as "the walled city". In addition to the warehouses, the Empire Stores were constructed between 1870 and 1885.
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