Thomas Greene Playground

Thomas Greene Playground is a two-acre playground at DeGraw and Sackett Streets near Smith Street in the Gowanus section of Brooklyn. The playground sits near the Gowanus Canal, the heavily contaminated waterway that is the subject of one of the largest Superfund cleanup operations in the northeastern United States.

The playground features a swimming pool, play equipment, basketball courts, and open areas. The pool, located just blocks from the Superfund site, has raised environmental health concerns that have prompted testing and monitoring to ensure the safety of the facility's users.

Gowanus has become one of Brooklyn's most dynamic neighborhoods, attracting artists, restaurants, and increasingly, residential developers who are betting on the canal cleanup and neighborhood rezoning to transform the area. The playground serves the families who are part of this transition.

The Gowanus Canal's designation as a Superfund site in 2010 triggered a comprehensive cleanup of the waterway, which had accumulated over 150 years of industrial pollution including coal tar, heavy metals, and raw sewage. The cleanup is expected to take years and cost over a billion dollars.

Thomas Greene Playground provides essential recreation space in a neighborhood navigating one of the most complex environmental and urban transformations in Brooklyn's history. The playground's continued operation alongside the canal cleanup demonstrates the resilience of community life even in the shadow of environmental remediation.