Honey Locust Park provides much needed green space and tranquility at the foot of southern entrance of the Manhattan side of the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge.
The park provides a green space in the community to soften the urbanity of the neighborhood and the traffic on the bridge.
Honey Locust Park, NYC
The Honey Locust Park is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Transportation (DOT).
In September 1938, DOT issued a permit to NYC Parks that allowed indefinite use of the space as a public park.
Originally, Honey Locust Park was informally called Gateway Park. This was possibly due to its proximity to the bridge roadway entrance.
In 1980, it extend its boundaries to include the entire block along 59th Street, between First and Second Avenues. The park was extended to its current boundary, though bridge maintenance, utility vehicle parking, and tunnel work necessitated continued joint occupancy of the site until the Department of Environmental Protection finished work in 2018.
Parks Commissioner Henry Stern formally named the site Fourteen Honey Locusts Park in October 1996, after the Honey Locusts that stretched the city block. The name was ultimately shortened to Honey Locust Park in 2019.
The honey locust tree, originally restricted to the Mississippi Valley, is now found along the eastern coast. In its natural variety, it sprouts clusters of long thorns from its trunk. Cultivated varieties, however—like those in this park—have no thorns. The wood of the honey locust is heavy and durable, making it ideal material for railroad ties, fence posts, and agricultural implements. The honey locust’s fruit provides food for deer, rabbits, and squirrels.
The Park is maintained by the community as a neighborhood garden and sitting area.
In 2022, it received a $1.67 million revamp with works done between January and September of that year. This revamp has added on benches, plaza space, pavements, landscaping, and water service to the park.
Getting to Honey Locust Park
Where: 303-353 E 59th St, New York, NY 10022, United States
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