The Lush Life in Saratoga Park
I was biking around the neighborhood this weekend and I came upon a park in the far eastern reaches of the neighborhood. Saratoga Park or Saratoga Square Park as it is sometimes called is located between Saratoga and Howard Avenues and Halsey and Macon Streets. It’s a little over 3 acres making it the second largest park in Bedford-Stuyvesant (Tompkins Park is the largest with over 7 acres).
The land was originally owned by James C. Brower who sold it to the City of Brooklyn in 1896 for a mere $121,975. The park includes a World War I memorial that was erected in the 1920s and a playground that was originally built in the 1930s. The streets surrounding the park are tree-lined, and this makes it quite a relaxing, secluded area.
It may be second in size but it is first in lushness. In the park there are many large trees that provide a lot of shade. The other parks in Bed-Stuy pale in comparison to Saratoga. I did some research to find out why this park looks so much more verdant than Tompkins, and the NYC Parks and Recreation website offered this funny explanation for the sparseness of plants/trees in Tompkins Park:
It was not until 1871, however, that the plan for [Tompkins Park] was submitted by Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted, the designers of Prospect and Central Parks. Like most small parks of the time, Tompkins Park was planned as a public square used for ceremonies and military reviews. The designers provided for little more than border plantings of flower and shrubs, claiming that trees and winding walks would result in the park being used, “for clandestine purposes by people of bad character.” (emphasis added)
So because shade trees bring out shady people and their shady dealings, Vaux and Olmsted decided to hold my area of Bed-Stuy to a high moral standard and the result is that our park got fewer trees.
In this picture of Tompkins Park (taken from the corner of Marcy and Greene) it is easy to see that, compared to Saratoga Park, Tompkins has much less greenery. Nevertheless, if you have the time next weekend, get out and enjoy both parks. They are nice, relaxing spaces within the borders of our neighborhood.
21 May 2007, 4:54 pm
Yeah I remember being struck by the beauty of this park and its surroundings — until we came to Saratoga and saw the project there that pretty much stabs you in the soul. With a serrated knife. Can’t understand how anyone would want to live in such a building.
21 May 2007, 5:22 pm
There’s a project near this park!!?! I didn’t even notice it because I was in awe of the park and I couldn’t take my eyes off of all of that greenery.
21 May 2007, 5:58 pm
A bit dramatic. Projects are a fact of life…a blot on social thinking and creativity, but a reality none-the-less.
22 May 2007, 7:53 am
In the 80s djs used to set up shop and we would party at Tompkins Park. How hard would it be to plant trees there?
22 May 2007, 11:42 am
Ironic! I just passed Saratoga park on Saturday as well (going down Halsey)! It is VERY lush and green! Love it! There is another park in Bed Stuy on Lafayette and Marcy is that the Thompskins Park? I thought it was called Van something park…
22 May 2007, 5:15 pm
That’s right–Tompkins Park is also called Herbert Von King Park. Herbert Von King was considered The Mayor of Bed-Stuy, and he did a lot to improve this neighborhood.
03 December 2007, 1:06 pm
…still chuckling over Saratoga existing for years and years, to the enjoyment of our community, and being ‘discovered’ on a peaceful afternoon bike glide in 2007. Rich.
03 December 2007, 1:35 pm
Well given that I am (relatively) new to this community and no welcome wagon came by to tell me about all it has to offer, I had to go around finding things on my own. I was hoping that I would save other newbies the trouble of having to stumble upon it, asking themselves “Why didn’t anyone tell me this great park was here?”
It’s all fine and good that the people living UP ON THE PARK know about it or that people who have grown up here know about it. How about letting some of us who are not living parkside or are recent arrivals know about it? So let me make this clear: this post was not written for those of you who already knew about this place.
And don’t think I didn’t pick up on the implication of urban imperialism with your use of the term “discovered.” Don’t worry about any new latte-toting residents conquering your little park. We won’t do that until the park gets wi-fi.
24 October 2008, 8:34 am
[...] carving pumpkins (courtesy of the Bed-Stuy Home Depot). So bring the kids and spend some time in Bed-Stuy’s prettiest park. The park is located between Saratoga and Howard Avenues and Halsey and Macon [...]