Washington Market Park facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Washington Market Park
Washington Market Park. The tall buildings of the World Financial Center can be seen in the background.
Area	1.61 acres (0.65 ha)

Washington Market Park is a cool green space in the TriBeCa neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. This park is located between Greenwich, Chambers, and West Streets. It covers about 1.61-acre (6,500 m²) of land. The park also has lovely community gardens and a big playground. It often hosts many fun events for the community.

Park History

In the late 1970s, New York City planned to build a parking lot on an old dump site. This spot was just south of the Independence Plaza apartments. But people living in TriBeCa, including former City Councilwoman Kathryn E. Freed, didn't want a parking lot.

They protested and worked hard for a new city park in their neighborhood. At that time, the small, triangular Duane Park was one of the only green spaces in TriBeCa. The activists successfully convinced city officials to build a park instead of the parking lot. This new park was named Washington Market Park.

Washington Market, around 1890

A special grant from the city helped design and build the park. Lee Weintraub, an architect, was chosen to design it. In 1978, a non-profit group called Washington Market Community Park, Inc. was created. This group, run by people from the community, helps manage the park.

Washington Market Park officially opened in April 1983. It is named after the old Washington Market. This market used to be New York City's most important place for selling fresh food. It was busiest between 1880 and 1910. The city tore down the old market buildings in the 1960s. This happened when the wholesale food industry moved to Hunts Point in the Bronx.

In 2003, Mayor Michael Bloomberg helped Washington Market Park. It was one of twelve parks in Lower Manhattan that received money for upgrades. These improvements cost a total of $25 million.