Lower Manhattan will get a park commemorating 'Little Syria'

New York City will add yet another park to its enclave of green spaces. According to Untapped Cities, a new park will take shape in lower Manhattan where a historic neighborhood known as "Little Syria" once stood.

The city’s Department of Parks and Recreation will construct the 20,000-square-foot park, to be named after the late Downtown Alliance president Liz Berger, where Trinity Place collides with Greenwich and Edgar streets near the Battery Tunnel Exit. It's purpose extends beyond adding more park space to the neighborhood– it will recall the history of the area that once thrived with immigrants from modern-day Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, and Israel before being destroyed by Robert Moses and the construction of the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel.

Elizabeth H. Berger Plaza will pay homage to Little Syria by showcasing the works of artists and writers with a connection to the area. Though renderings haven’t been revealed just yet, it was announced that France and Morocco-based artist Sara Ouhaddou will helm the public art monument, after submitting the winning design proposal. Her work will depict four pillars with designs inspired by Arabic calligraphy bearing a dome made from stained glass.

The park is also set to have pedestrian paths that will link it to the 9/11 Memorial and Battery Park. As it stands, the plaza has an anticipated completion date for some time in 2019.

NYC Parks via Untapped Cities

• New Park, Elizabeth H. Berger Plaza, Will Commemorate Literary Legacy of NYC’s Little Syria[Untapped Cities]
• Before the World Trade Center [Curbed]