With some 400 acres of green space, Riverside Park is not only big, but unique. 

It has multiple levels from Riverside Drive to the Hudson River, with opportunities for a variety of recreation, from active to passive.

What You Need To Know

  • Riverside Park is a multi-level park on the west side of New York City, spanning from Riverside Drive to the Hudson River, West 59th to 181st Streets

  • The park includes some 400 acres of green space, over six miles of parkland

  • The park is cared for by the Riverside Park Conservancy, which has cancelled it's September 15 gala and launched a fundraising drive to address racial and social inequities in the park

  • The areas that border Riverside Park north of 120th Street have three times the poverty rate as in the Upper West Side portion

The Riverside Park Conservancy are stewards of this urban oasis, which actually now includes five parks from West 59th to West 181st Streets.

"Starting from Riverside Park South and going all the way up to Fort Washington Park at the George Washington Bridge, the Little Red Lighthouse,” said Dan Garodnick, president of the Riverside Park Conservancy.

Since 2009, the Conservancy has been trying to put more focus on the Harlem and Washington Heights portions of the park in an effort called the “North Park Initiative.”

It's now upping the ante, cancelling its September 15 Gala and launching a fundraising drive to address racial and social inequities in the park. 

"The areas that border the park north of 120th Street have three times the poverty rate as that of the Upper West Side,” said Garodnick, who added that the city has under-invested in that portion of the park over time. He noted that with private fundraising, a lot of the resources that come are from donors who have more resources to give.

Garodnick says the campaign seeks 400 donors, one for each acre of the park, to help make improvements in a historically under-resourced area, where most residents are Black or Latino.

"Enhance the programming, help with cleanliness, help us to advocate for more resources from the city, and to make sure that all six miles of this parkland feels like it is truly spectacular and one of a kind, which it is, but we have more work to do,” said Garodnick. 

The campaign is getting backing from elected officials like State Assemblywoman Inez Dickens. Her district includes part of the park. 

"That's important that we invest in the park, not just because it's greenery or flowers, but because of what it will do emotionally for the mental health of the people in the surrounding area,” said Dickens. 

State Assemblyman Al Taylor, who also represents the area, agrees with his colleague in the State Legislature. 

"We in New York State, we in New York City, can make this park greater than what it was,” said Taylor, who noted it's not always about dollars, but the little things to keep the park beautified — like some paint in spots, and keeping it clean. As Taylor put it, "Love on this park."