New park opens in Manhattan by Brooklyn Bridge

MANHATTAN (PIX11) -- Get ready to meet down under the Brooklyn Bridge. 

Some new arches are getting attention in the city as a new park opened this week at the base of the bridge on the Manhattan side. A visual detail is the line of arches along the base structure. 

Sixteen park benches line the stone paths in the open space between Park Row and Rose Street. 

The NYC Department of Transportation estimates it’s about a third of an acre off Frankfort Street. But it’s a big step for the agency and an important connection for the surrounding neighborhoods of Lower Manhattan and Chinatown. 

The area was fenced off for more than a decade. It’s a staging area for the major restoration project at the Brooklyn Bridge. 

Connie has been a neighbor for six decades.

“This is so much better now than what it was. It’s a great improvement,” she said. 

Skateboarders are celebrating the area for its historical significance. It has been known as “Brooklyn Banks.” The city says it was designed with a revitalized skate space. 

The space has basketball, pickleball, and shuffleboard facilities next to the 53 historic arches on the north side of the bridge. 

NYC DOT says the largest sections have yet to be re-opened and a local engagement process is underway. The community board will be involved, and visioning sessions will be scheduled. 

The agency also applied to the U.S. DOT for a federal grant to fund the next sections of the Arches project under the Reconnecting Communities Pilot. 

“It has been closed off. It’s important that it's designed as it originally was. It’s amazing,” said William as he skated around the plaza. 

NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez said the total restoration project is nearly $1 billion in investments. 

"For the last decade, NYC DOT crews have worked hard to restore the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, creating a cleaner, brighter, and safer bridge to last us another century. Now that this critical restoration is nearing a close, we are returning another portion of ‘The Arches' to the community,” said Commissioner Rodriguez.

City officials and residents said even small spaces can be previous. 

"When people think about the Brooklyn Bridge, the beautiful space under the bridge in Dumbo and Brooklyn Bridge Park also come to mind. Soon, the Manhattan side of the Brooklyn Bridge will provide the public with just as iconic public space,” said Ya-Ting Liu, NYC Chief Public Realm Officer. 

Pedestrians described it as a good way to walk between city hall, municipal offices, and police headquarters.