Rezoning Threatens Sunlight for Micro-Park in Manhattan

A new plan to rezone areas of Midtown Manhattan has advocates fighting to protect sunlight for one of the city’s smallest parks.

The Greenacre Foundation, which runs the 1/7-acre Greenacre Park, says that a new rezoning plan threatens to cast the entire park into shadow by allowing taller buildings that would block out the afternoon sun and endanger plant life. The New York Times reports that the city’s rezoning plan aims to finance improvements to public services like subway stations.

The plan, which requires City Council approval, conducted a “shadow study” which stated that any construction from rezoning would not impact the park’s light. But the Greenacre Foundation commissioned its own study and found that rezoning could put the entire park in shadow.