Brooklyn · Kings County
Coney Island Creek Greenway
NYC Parks
- Location
- Along Coney Island Creek from Gravesend Bay to Shell Road
- Size
- 15 acres
- Hours
- Dawn to dusk
- Type
- NYC Parks
Coney Island Creek Greenway is a developing waterfront park and trail system along Coney Island Creek, the tidal waterway that separates Coney Island from the Brooklyn mainland.
Coney Island Creek was once navigable by large vessels and served as a commercial waterway for the Coney Island resort industry. The creek has been partially filled over the decades but still provides a tidal connection between Gravesend Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.
The greenway project aims to restore the creek's ecological function while providing public access to a waterway that most Brooklyn residents do not know exists. The creek supports populations of horseshoe crabs, one of the oldest living species on Earth.
The Coney Island Creek area has a fascinating history including a submarine base during World War I, various failed development schemes, and ongoing environmental cleanup of industrial contamination.
Coney Island Creek Greenway represents an emerging effort to reconnect Brooklyn with its forgotten waterways, transforming neglected industrial shoreline into public parkland.