The Ridgewood Reservoir was a main water source for Brooklyn in the 1800s, built by entrepreneurs to keep the then-City’s booming population from dying of thirst. After consolidation with New York City, Brooklyn’s water system was mostly relegated to a back up for Brooklyn in emergencies. After 1989, it was abandoned to nature. A forest grew where it stood, providing a home for various migratory bird species. Now the City, sensing something wonderful has been created without its direction, wants to bulldoze it all in a fit of spite. Well, no, but I’m sure it has something to do with keeping someone’s cousin Vinnie in business. I mean, what good are City jobs without the ability to rake in the contracts for your relatives?
Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe says what’s the big deal? It’s just some weeds that grew in a puddle:
“These are really accidental landscapes that have grown up out of lack of maintenance and lack of use.”
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