The Parks Department planted approximately two dozen new trees along Emmons Avenue west of Ocean Avenue this week, as the city moves to complete the final phase of a decade-long rehabilitation of the waterfront.
The $460,000 project, funded by Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz, will continue throughout the spring. On the checklist for beautification are:
- repaired sidewalks
- covered trash bins
- new trees, with granite block pavement in enlarged tree pits
- new curb cuts
- fresh paint on the Bay’s railing
- blue concrete and matching artistic design elements previously installed near the piers, from Ocean Avenue to East 27th Street
- 1964 World’s Fair-style benches
When construction is finished, the Emmons Avenue street-scape will have seen a complete overhaul over the last decade. Repairs began in 2003, when the city installed new antique-style lights along Emmons Avenue and Shore Boulevard. In 2006, the city completed a similar renovation to the current one, from Ocean Avenue to East 27th Street, adding new benches, sidewalk designs, tree pits and more.
Cymbrowitz, in a press release, said that the improvements will help the community continue to recover from Superstorm Sandy.
“Beautifying Emmons Avenue is part of the larger mechanism of long-term recovery,” Cymbrowitz said. “Trees represent new life. They’re meant to last, and so is Sheepshead Bay.”
