Lovingly tended by Rob Watson and company.

Visitors talked to the chickens, communed with the Turtles in the pond, played in the sandbox and Bocce Court – and watched the migrations of the Monarch Butterflies.

And the fearless Parks Rat Borough Removers swung by:

Beautiful and endangered. Monarch Butterflies.

Several Gardeners are now growing milkweed – crucial to the Monarch’s survival.

Endangered by Climate Change and “Roundup” Herbicide NYTimes:

“Of all the assaults on the monarch population, climate change may prove the most pernicious. In summer, excessive heat stresses developing caterpillars already vulnerable to diseases and predators. In fall, unseasonable warmth can prevent them from heading south in time to reach their wintering grounds, and extreme weather events like hurricanes can destroy an entire wave of the migration before it reaches Mexico…”

“The life cycle of the monarch hinges on the availability of milkweed, but the prevalence of the herbicide Roundup has made milkweed very hard to find: Crops genetically modified to withstand herbicides can be carpet-sprayed, poisoning every wildflower in its wake. Milkweed, which once grew in great stands along the nation’s roadsides and in the margins of farms, essentially disappeared from the American landscape overnight. In 1996, the year before Roundup-resistant soybeans and corn were first planted in the Midwest, the butterflies’ primary migration corridor, there were a billion migrating monarchs in North America. This year there are roughly 109 million, and that number is down 27 percent from just last year.”

Pam Ito of the Horticultural Society (“The Hort”) is hosting the NYC Audubon Society in SDR Park.

They will begin at Hester and Forsyth and walk up through the park at 9:30am Saturday November 4th!

If you have them, please bring binoculars – though there will be pairs to share.

Stay tuned for further details…

Many migrating birds have been passing through the park.

From the NYC Audubon Society:

Help The Audubon Society Learn About Dangers to Migrating Birds with D-Bird

Fall migration is underway— many migrating birds will run into trouble while attempting to ‘navigate our city’s maze of cement and glass’.

If you find an injured or dead bird the Wild Bird Fund offers good advice on what to do.

If a bird needs professional  help call Wild Bird Fund: 646-306-2862

or view list of Animal Hospitals and Rehabilitation Centers in New York City to find a place to take the bird.

Project Safe Flight we can help understand bird collisions in New York City by using D-Bird.

2017

With a very large thanks to the Park’s Department for our new Big Belly Solar Compacting Garbage Bins.

The only bins that are truly rat proof. There will be a few kinks to work out but we are grateful they are here.

There have been two Big Belly sitings – one near “The Pit” and the other in Rivington Playground. Have you seen them anywhere else?

One of our many reasons to restore the building back to public use!

BoweryBoogie Op-Ed from Wendy Brawer of Green Map:

“In an era where the most vulnerable have already been hardest hit by climate change, deportation threats and unemployment, the current vision of a community “green culture center” for the Stanton Building will support all of us in the movement toward social resiliency by building green jobs, ecological and climate stabilization skills, and include homeless peoples’ needs and emergency preparedness. Hurricanes Irma, Maria and Harvey are stark reminders of the need to address climate adaption from the bottom up.”

Park space in front restored for benches, planters, flowers…creating a safer more enjoyable space for everyone. What other possibilities can you imagine for this site?

Wendy Brawer of Green Map System and Stanton Building Task Force hosted several organizations on a tour of Sara Roosevelt Park this morning. Wendy’s commitment to sustainable practices and the environment puts her in contact with like-minded people all over the world.

Today was no exception.

Roadmap and Ecological Chart of Chinese Environmental Protection Agencies which includes Friends of Nature, Green Hunan, Heye Institute, Riverwatcher Action Network, and Ali Baba Foundation. 

They were joined by K Webster of Sara Roosevelt Park Community Coalition  and Kim Fong of the BRC Senior Center  who spoke of the seniors vital connection to the M’Finda Kalunga Community Garden 

The Gardens in SDR park and the communities that use the park building at Delancey Street show the strength of communities that share neighborhood resources bring. When park buildings are used by and for the community for needed actions/activities – the gardens and parks flourish around them.

Two issues that affect Sara Roosevelt Park:

• Bus depots: At least two more have now located on Chrystie near Canal across from 3 schools and a park.
• No pollution controls required for these buses.
• No legal way to restrict them due to bad driver/bus company track records.
• No legal means to locally protect bus riders, pedestrians and bicyclists. NY State and Federal Government are tasked with enforcing/monitoring bus companies.

Full coverage here from The Lo-Down.

“…Republican opposition forced former Sen. Daniel Squadron …to water down their intercity bus regulation law enacted several years ago….

…Squadron…led a task force that worked with local law enforcement agencies to go after rogue bus operators. Now State Assembly member Yuh-Line Niou … tells us she prepared to reactivate the task force…”

• Bike lane signage: We have (still) new two-way bike lanes that hug the west side of SDR Park. We’ve had reports of many many near collisions with pedestrians. We have blind folks here, we have deaf folks here we have elders, children, park goers who are needlessly endangered by the lack of awareness from bike riders. Signage to warn everyone of the pedestrian/bike areas are needed NOW. Before another tragedy happens. From BoweryBoogie here:

“Mr. Leung was crossing Essex Street from east to west in a marked crosswalk with the pedestrian signal in his favor when he was struck by the bicyclist. The bicyclist was traveling southbound on Essex Street in the left travel lane and disobeyed a steady red signal at Hester Street where he struck Mr. Leung.”

The Parks Commissioner has promised to work with DOT on this bike signage.