Several Parks Department workers descended upon the dormant Relaxation Garden on 13th Street and Avenue B and removed trash and debris this past Thursday.
As the Post reported, the GreenThumb garden, part of the city’s urban gardening program, had been locked up the past two years during renovation work next door. During this time, the space had become infested with rats — thanks in part to the NYCHA-controlled trash compactor adjacent to the lot.
[Photo from yesterday]
Per the Post:
For about four hours, the workers hauled away trash and construction debris from the lot at Avenue B and East 13th Street, cut down a tree, pruned shrubs and hacked at weeds.
“It’s going to come back as a community garden. We can’t say when,” a Parks Department worker told The Post.
The workers also removed the GreenThumb-branded Relaxation Garden sign from the fence.
Meanwhile, the construction at the building next door, 207 Avenue B, remains at a standstill. The city issued a Stop Work Order in March 2017 because the contractor of record withdrew from the project. That Order is still in place as of Friday.
The Parks Department was reportedly working with 207's landlord to expedite the work so that the garden can reopen.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Rats running rampant in the Relaxation Garden on Avenue B and 13th Street
The rats remain untouched and their City-fed-and-housed community continues to thrive. Parks cleaned up some of the weeds, trash etc., and the NYCHA-hired management company (C & C Management) cleared and paved over the small fenced-in area they control between the trash holding area and the garden. But no one has done anything about the rats. I was walking my dog by there at about 7:30 PM on Monday and saw at least a dozen rats of all sizes scurrying around. Nothing has changed for the rats except they now have to travel a little farther to get to their burrows. #NYCGovtAllCooks&NoChefs
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