by James Dunne, The Brooklyn Brain

Brooklyn Bridge Park recently opened its latest addition, Pier 6. I took a bike ride down to the park, beginning at Pier 1, to view the progress, and I have to say that it is impressive. When I arrived in Brooklyn 10 years ago, the area that is now Brooklyn Bridge Park was a largely desolate and under-utilized strip of prime New York real estate. I used to take walks in DUMBO when it was a warehouse-land with just one old bar and a Mexican restaurant - now, the Brooklyn Bride Park Conservancy, which runs the show, holds yoga classes on the waterfront, along with a host of other activities. Pier 1, where I started, now has a wine bar, a gourmet taco stand, and locally made ice-cream food cart serving the area. The landscaping has expanded since the last time I was there, as shown in the picture below:

BK Park

In the background you can see the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) carved into the granite, with Brooklyn Heights and the promenade perched on top. There is a bike and jogging path that connects Pier 1 to Pier 6 that passes the other yet-to-be-developed Piers 2-5. Pier 2 is shown in this picture:

Pier 2

When I arrived at Pier 6, they had a sand-filled volleyball court open, plus a children’s play area with sprinklers, which was swarming with kids. I often used the service road under the BQE, which passed by this area, as short-cut when driving though Brooklyn and I would wonder if this area would ever be developed. It was still partially used as a shipping-container port back then, so I’m excited to see the area thriving, but now my short-cut is full of taxis and tour-buses.