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Brooklyn Bridge Park's Pier 3 Debuts with Great Lawn and an Exploratory Playground

'The Great Lawn' of Brooklyn Bridge Park adds five acres of urban greenery to the borough's waterfront and a playground for 'kids' of all ages. "The Great Lawn" of Brooklyn Bridge Park.
Pier 3, BK Reader
“The Great Lawn” of Brooklyn Bridge Park. Photo credit: NY Curbed

'The Great Lawn' of Brooklyn Bridge Park adds five acres of urban greenery to the borough's waterfront and a playground for 'kids' of all ages.

Brooklyn Bridge Park opened Pier 3.
"The Great Lawn" of Brooklyn Bridge Park. Photo credit: NY Curbed

On Tuesday, Brooklyn Bridge Park opened Pier 3 to the public. The latest addition to the park, which is now 90 percent finished, is adding five acres of lush green space to the Brooklyn waterfront, reports NY Curbed.

"I keep thinking of Pier 3 as our version of a Long Meadow or a Great Lawn in Prospect and Central Parks," said Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation President Eric Landau. "We're so excited to provide even more space for people to play and relax this summer. With Pier 3's large central lawn and amazing labyrinth for children of all ages, Brooklyn Bridge Park just keeps getting better!"

Brooklyn Bridge Park opened Pier 3.
The exploratory labyrinth. Photo credit: NY Curbed

The new "Great Lawn" of Brooklyn Bridge Park is situated between Pier 2's playgrounds, basketball courts and the roller rink, and Pier 5's soccer field. Aside from offering plenty of room to hang out and amazing skyline views, Pier 3 also provides space for play with its "exploratory labyrinth." The maze features various visual and sound elements such as a walk-in kaleidoscope, funhouse mirrors, an echo game and dance chimes. For additional seating, Pier 3 is also furnished with picnic tables and Adirondack chairs. The surrounding hardscaped area offers space for small events and performances.

Brooklyn Bridge Park opened Pier 3.
Photo credit: NY Curbed

The landscape, designed by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, boasts an abundance of greenery: 550 trees along with thousands of shrubs transform the once-industrial berth into a lush urban oasis.

But, Brooklyn Bridge Park still has three sections left to finish: the Pier 2 uplands which is currently home to the pop-up pool; the permanent pool at Squibb Park; and the area beneath the Brooklyn Bridge, which connects Dumbo and Brooklyn Heights. Landau hopes that the park will have completed all constructions by 2020.

"It's not like it's an 85-acre park that is built easily, because we're building on waterfront piers that are held up with timber woodpiles," said Landau. "It is an extraordinary accomplishment for this park, for this borough, for this city."




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