DEP Joins Trust for Public Land, NewYork-Presbyterian, MOCEJ, and Elected Officials for Opening of New Community Schoolyard at Inwood Community Campus

June 26, 2024

Green infrastructure design will help capture nearly 1 million gallons of stormwater runoff, reducing neighborhood flooding

Today, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection joined Trust for Public Land, NewYork-Presbyterian, the Mayor's Office of Climate and Environmental Justice (MOCEJ), and several elected officials at the Inwood Community Campus in Manhattan to proudly celebrate the opening of the newest Community Schoolyard. The new space serves as a schoolyard for three schools in Northern Manhattan: the Harold O. Levy School (I.S. 52), the High School for Excellence and Innovation, and the Inwood Early College for Health and Information Technologies. Trust for Public Land's Community Schoolyard program helps transform asphalt playgrounds into green spaces and aims to improve student education outcomes, community health, and climate resiliency.

The newly renovated schoolyard will feature fitness equipment, a volleyball court, picnic tables, an outdoor classroom, and pollinator gardens. It will also feature green infrastructure to capture nearly 1 million gallons of stormwater annually to ease pressure on the area's sewer system, reducing flooding and in turn, improving water quality of the East River.

"Parks are essential for the health of all New Yorkers, and this new community space is a key part of our work to close the park equity gap and increase climate resiliency," said Tamar Renaud, New York State Director for Trust for Public Land. "Creating new access to the outdoors will give students the opportunity to learn and play, while serving as a community gathering space for residents. TPL is proud to have the support of NewYork-Presbyterian and our city partners who are dedicated to improving community health."

The Mayor's Office of Climate and Environmental Justice (MOCEJ) has been a critical partner in protecting residents from climate impacts while improving community health and well-being.

"As New Yorkers contend with more heavy rainfall events, we need effective public-private partnerships that address flooding while also offering community benefits," said Mayor's Office of Climate & Environmental Justice Executive Director Elijah Hutchinson. "The Inwood Community Campus schoolyard will ease the pressure on our overtaxed sewer infrastructure and provide recreation, biodiversity, outdoor wellness, and places to gather and connect-all elements of New York City's just and equitable climate transition."

The new schoolyard was designed by students of the three schools, along with community partners and neighbors. It will be accessible to both the school and wider community after school hours and on the weekends.

The schoolyard was made possible, in part, thanks to a $250,000 grant from NewYork-Presbyterian's Northern Manhattan Recovery Fund in collaboration with Representative Adriano Espaillat (NY-13).

"We are delighted to celebrate the opening of this vibrant community schoolyard and provide a green space for the school and community members to enjoy," said Anne Sperling, vice president of government and community affairs at NewYork-Presbyterian. "NewYork-Presbyterian is proud to collaborate with Trust for Public Land and Representative Espaillat to support and improve the health of the communities we serve."

Access to the outdoors for sport and play is a fundamental human need, essential to our health and well-being, and is an important tool in mitigating the effects of climate change. And yet, 100 million people, including 28 million kids, do not have access to a quality park within a 10-minute walk from home. The parks we do have are often not equitable. On average, parks in communities of color in the U.S. are half the size, lower quality, and in many instances more prone to flooding than parks serving predominantly white neighborhoods, according to Trust for Public Land data.

Since 1996, TPL's NYC Playgrounds Program has helped design and build 228 school and community playgrounds across the five boroughs.

About the NYC Department of Environmental Protection

DEP manages New York City's water supply, providing approximately 1 billion gallons of high-quality drinking water each day to more than 9 million residents, including 8.3 million in New York City. The water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the city, comprising 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,500 miles of sewer lines and 96 pump stations take wastewater to 14 in-city treatment plants. DEP has a robust capital program, with a planned $29 billion in investments over the next 10 years that will create up to 3,000 construction-related jobs per year. For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter.

About Trust for Public Land

Trust for Public Land (TPL) is a national nonprofit that works to connect everyone to the benefits and joys of the outdoors. As a leader in equitable access to the outdoors, TPL works with communities to create parks and protect public land where they are needed most. Since 1972, TPL has protected more than 4 million acres of public land, created more than 5,420 parks, trails, schoolyards, and iconic outdoor places, raised $94 billion in public funding for parks and public lands, and connected nearly 9.4 million people to the outdoors. To learn more, visit tpl.org.

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