The Linden-Bushwick Community Garden has been a community hub for nearly 30 years. For Bushwick residents, it is a source of fresh food and a place of tranquility, earning it the nickname “The Secret Garden.” But gentrifying developers plan to destroy The Secret Garden to illegally build a 20-story building complex and parking lot in its place.

The story of the Secret Garden is part of a larger pattern: gentrification across the country continues to erase sacred green spaces in Black and Brown communities. In the era of Covid-19, green space is even more critical to protect collective mental health. This proposed development will strip Bushwick of an essential green space, and will not even provide affordable housing that is so desperately needed in the community.

Community members were not consulted in the plans to develop the space. The project is “as of right,” meaning community input is not legally required.

Community members are fighting back and recently uncovered a deed restriction stating that the land must be legally kept as “an open space.” Developers have refused to acknowledge this and have not attended any community meetings to discuss the matter. Not only is this project morally wrong, it’s illegal -- and we won’t back down until The Secret Garden is saved.

We urge you to hear the needs of the community and cancel development plans at 1333 Broadway.