Kingsland Wildflowers

520 Kingsland Avenue, Brooklyn

If you are in the market for an unusual and incredible Brooklyn experience, Kingsland Wildflowers is an absolutely surreal green roof landscape that is located atop an industrial building in a sea of urban-ness in the middle of Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Designed and installed by Alive Structures, it has been funded by several not- for profits as remediation for one of the largest oil spills on record, The Newtown Oil Spill which poured between 17-20 million gallons of oil into the Brooklyn waterway over many decades. The project contributes additional habitat for butterflies, insects, birds and other wildlife affected by the ecological devastation incurred.

Alive Structures began the installation of the green roof in the summer of 2016 when they installed10,000 sq. ft.of wildflowers, and continued to install another 10,000 sq ft in 2017. There are two intensive green roofs which are open to the public and have 6” of green roof soil medium and 2” of drainage mix beneath it. The intensive roofs are planted with a mix of native grasses and native flowering perennials. As it is brand new, it will be very cool to see how this landscape evolves over time. 
 

The big stars of the show are the incredibly unusual futuristic "Digestive Eggs" that are actually the Newtown Creek Waste Treatment Plant. Designed in 2010 by Polshek Partners, these "eggs" process between 1.3-1.5 billion gallons of sludge per day. The forms on the skyline are a perfect juxtaposition with the wildflower meadow, and the waterways are the cleanest they have been in 100 years as a result of this waste treatment plant.

The project has been funded by several not-for-profits including Greenpoint Community Environmental Fund, the New York City Audubon, Newtown Creek Alliance, Broadway Stages, and The Fortune Society.

And a big thank you to garden designer Marni Majorelle of Alive Structures for supplying images and information on their lovely project.