naturalheroes
TheNewYork RestorationProject
Reclaims Parks, Community Gardens
and Open Spaces.
By Tom Citrano
This month’s Natural Heroes are a group of hard-working New York residents who are truly this city’s Green Super-Heroes.
The New York Restoration Project, founded by entertainer Bette Midler in 1995, started with the simple belief that clean, green neighborhoods are fundamental to the quality of life, and that every community in New York deserves “an oasis of natural beauty.” That simple concept has quickly grown into a successful powerhouse that reflects the following stats (from nyrp.org website):
*Raised over 38 million dollars for the restoration and development of under-resourced parks, community gardens and open spaces in economically- challenged communities throughout New York City.
*Removed over 875 tons of garbage and debris – cars, construction materials, garbage, litter and over 3,000 tires – from project sites.
*Transformed an illegal dumping ground into Swindler Cove Park, a brand new 5-acre public park on the Harlem River, which is now home to NYRP’s Riley-Levin Children’s Garden and Peter Jay Sharp Boathouse, offering free environmental education and recreational programs for at-risk youth.
*Helped save scores of community
gardens throughout NYC from commercial 
development and established the New and develop 57 gardens in perpetuity.
*Cleaned and made safe more than 400 acres in historic Fort Tyron, Fort Washington and Highbridge parks, including reclaiming 119 abandoned and overgrown acres, after more than two decades of non-use.
*Opened the New Leaf Café in Fort Tryon Park, a unique entrepreneurial endeavor in park concessions. All net restaurant profits are redirected back into the beautification and maintenance of the park. The café welcomes over 40,000 visitors each year.
*Implemented a new set of standards for the Adopt-A-Highway program, along the Henry Hudson Parkway.
NYRP’s vision continues to be nurtured by a partnership with individuals, community-based groups and public agencies. In a city that has always valued their celebrated parks, but sometimes needs reminding of the work to be done in preserving forgotten parks and the creation of new spaces, NYRP has become a conduit for green volunteerism and fundraising.
As NYRP looks to future projects, founder Bette Midler remembers the early days of the group, as she shared in an interview with Good Housekeeping Magazine. “When I moved to New York, I was very disappointed in how parts of the city looked. I was so upset, I didn’t sleep for weeks. I love New Yorkers, and I’m like them – I’m noisy, I have my opinions – but I’m not used to the kind of carelessness and waste that I was seeing.
People were throwing their garbage out the window, leaving their lunches on the ground. 
Finally, I realized I needed to actually do something – even if I had to pick up the stuff with my own hands.”
Almost 25 years later, New York City is a very different (and cleaner) place…But Ms. Midler and thousands of volunteers are still picking up trash and replacing it with green and sustainable spaces that continue to transform this “work in progress” of a city, into a better place. It takes a lot of Natural Heroes to make that happen.
For more information about The New York Restoration Project, visit website at: nyrp.org.
If you have a “Natural Hero” in your life, send an email to: heroes@nugreencity.com and tell us about that special someone who’s making our city and the planet a better place.
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