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596 Acres of Vacant Public Land

Help us help Brooklyn know that the empty space around them is theirs! (Our apologies to the other boroughs!)

Leader

Paula Z. Segal

Location

462 Halsey Street Brooklyn, NY 11221

About the project

 

596 Acres is a public education project aimed at making communities aware of the land resources around them. With the goal of a food sovereign New York City in mind, 596 Acres is helping neighbors form connections to the vacant lots in their lives -- from the smallest (throwing a seedbomb) to the largest (hosting a public meeting with the head of a City Agency that owns a vacant lot that was promised to the community as a park, see myrtlepark.org). Thanks to the Center for the Study of Brooklyn, we have learned that many of these lots are actually publicly owned and are developing a platform for negotiating interim and long term community uses for this warehoused public space.
 
596 acres is how much vacant public land existed in Brooklyn alone as of April 2010. If even a small portion of that was committed to neighborhood food production, we would have an abundance of fresh seasonal vegetables to eat! And think of all the grassy parks we could have! And composting sites! And whatever else Brooklynites and their neighbors know they need.

The Steps

Maps will be distributed, with directories of where vacant public land is and who owns it to citizens and activists. They will also be afixed directly to the lots in question, with contact information of the owner agency. 596Acres will be available to consult with groups and individuals as they reach out to NYC government entities asking for control of space in their neighborhoods.

Why we‘re doing it

New York City has a paucity of green space per person and the constant refrain is that there is not enough space here for all the awesome ideas that people have for how to "green" their neighborhoods and grow food. It turns out, the space is all around us -- especially concentrated in neighborhoods that need it most. 596 Acres is working to connect communities to the information they need to gain control of their environments.

$374.00 / $324.00