Steinway Parking Lot Becoming a Green, Flood-Resilient Space

Astoria’s Steinway & Sons Factory is redoing its parking lot, and this isn’t just any old repaving. The 53,500-square-foot parking lot, made up of a non-porous concrete surface that produces massive amounts of runoff during storms, is going green. The New York Restoration Project, with help from the City Parks Foundation and the Greening Western Queens Fund, is transforming the lot into a storm-resilient space by installing storm water capture systems and plantings. The greenery will help absorb approximately 404,000 gallons of water annually.

The landscape architecture firm Quennell Rothschild and Partners designed the new parking lot, which features 340 feet of bioswales (streets designed with plants and low curbs to absorb and filter rainfall) along the perimeter, 30 to 40 shade trees, 1,000 new plants, and an irrigation system to feed the new plants with collected storm water. The project will wrap in the next two weeks as Kelco Landscaping and Construction installs railings, adds soil and final plantings. Once finished, the catchment of 404,000 gallons of storm water will significantly reduce flooding and simultaneously feed an irrigation system that supports the growth of the new green landscape. Click through for another picture of the lot pre-renovation. And stay tuned for photographs of the parking lot when this major overhaul is complete! GMAP