named programs · 2 · from sources
What they call their work
Historical Education
Shares archival content and historical narratives about St. Vartan Park and its surroundings through website features and public materials
Park Clean-Up Initiatives
Organizes community clean-up events involving local schools and residents to maintain park and neighborhood cleanliness
activities · 4 groups
What they do
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Urban Park and Public Space Conservation 3 activities
- Community advocacy for park access and improvementCo-leads advocacy campaigns with community partners to improve St. Vartan Park and surrounding public spaces, including securing perpetual public access to the park garden, launching petitions for beautification of adjacent MTA land, gathering over 1,000 signatures for the Open Street campaign, and presenting community use proposals to city committees.
- Park infrastructure and recreational facility improvementsOversees physical improvements to park facilities, including converting an asphalt field into a synthetic turf field with accessible ramp entry, opening St. Gabriel’s Park as a dedicated sports play space, removing debris and installing clean fill during development, and allowing multi-use of handball courts for pickleball and other racquet sports.
- Stewardship and maintenance of St. Vartan Park gardenManages a fully accessible public garden of more than a quarter acre in Midtown Manhattan as the officially designated steward in cooperation with NYC Parks. Activities include installing accessible pathways and entrances, removing restrictive fencing, expanding public access to seven days a week, and hosting community programming such as educational field trips and children’s events.
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Community Festival & Event Production 1 activity
- Community events and public programmingHosts regular public events including free monthly movie nights (occurring twice per month) on the synthetic turf field, community Halloween parties on the Open Street corridor, volunteer projects for park maintenance, and service sessions for youth groups such as Cub Scouts Pack 422.
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Community Composting & Organic Waste Diversion 1 activity
- Environmental programming and sustainability initiativesImplements sustainability practices in the park including operating a public food-scrap drop-off composting site (collecting up to 4,000 pounds per month), installing and maintaining a Smart Composting Bin, using biodegradable Ecolo-Bags for leaf collection, planting thousands of flower bulbs and seeds since 2022, and documenting local biodiversity through photography and species tracking.
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Uncategorized 1 activity
- Public amenities and community resourcesProvides public amenities including a Little Free Library for book exchange and supplying/installing full nets for public basketball rims through the Swish You Were Here program.
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financials · form 990EZ · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$4K
Contributions & grants$4K100%
Program service revenue——
Investment income——
Other revenue—
expenses
Total expenses$4K
Program expenses—
Admin / overhead—
Fundraising—
Salaries & benefits—
Grants paid out—
balance sheet
Total assets$167
Cash—
Investments—
Liabilities—
Net assets$167
3 years on record · 2022–2024 · YoY revenue -65.6%
relationships · 26
Who they work with
- Alliance for Kips Bay Partner — Provided leadership in launching the food-scrap drop-off composting service in St. Vartan Park.
- Boy Scouts of New York City Partner — Collaborated with the Boy Scouts in historical bird-feeding initiatives in St. Vartan Park.
- Lower East Side Ecology Center Partner — Co-provided food-scrap drop-off composting service and hosted educational activities at St. Vartan Park Earth Day events.
- MTA Bridges and Tunnels Government — Provider of historical photographs documenting the handball wall.
- Manhattan Community Board 6 Partner — Collaborated with Manhattan Community Board 6 leadership at a public event announcing the transformation of a former parking facility into a public pocket park.
- Manhattan Community Board 6 Land Use & Waterfront Committee Partner — Presented a proposal to the committee on community utilization of the park building.
- Manhattan East Community Association Partner — Affiliate organization that manages the Swish You Were Here program in partnership with St. Vartan Park Conservancy.
- Manhattan East Community Association Partner — Co-leads community advocacy campaigns with the Conservancy to improve St. Vartan Park and surrounding areas.
- Maryel School Partner — Partnered with the Conservancy for a student field trip to the garden on May 24, 2024.
- Murray Hill Neighborhood Association Partner — Donated boxes of family-friendly books to support the Little Free Library.
- NYC Parks Government — Cooperates with NYC Parks in the stewardship of the St. Vartan Park garden and operates under a formal agreement granting the Conservancy leadership roles.
- NYC Parks Government — Cooperates with the Conservancy in opening and stewarding the St. Vartan Park garden; officially designated the Conservancy as steward of the garden.
- NYC Parks Government — Engaged in discussions with NYC Parks regarding the use and transformation of the park building for community benefit.
- NYC Parks Government — Manages St. Vartan Park under the jurisdiction of the City of New York
- NYC Parks Government — Partnered with NYC Parks to convert the asphalt field into synthetic turf as part of the East Side Coastal Resiliency project.
- NYC Parks Government — Partnered with NYC Parks, represented by Manhattan Borough Commissioner Tricia Shimamura, to announce the transformation of a former parking facility into a public pocket park.
- NYC Parks Partner — Collaborates on Ecolo-Bag leaf collection and composting initiatives in St. Vartan Park.
- P.S. 116 (Mary Lindley Murray) Partner — Collaborated on a bake sale to help fund the park's Little Free Library.
- P.S. 281 (The River School) Partner — Collaborated on a bake sale to help fund the park's Little Free Library.
- P.S. 281 (The River School) Partner — Hosted joint events with the Conservancy, including a planting activity and Green Team visit to the garden.
- P.S. 281 PTA Partner — Co-led the implementation of the food-scrap drop-off composting service in partnership with city and community organizations.
- St. Gabriel’s Parish Partner — Partnered with the parish in establishing St. Gabriel’s Park from the Kips’ Bay Playground.
- The Soloviev Foundation Partner — Provided a fully accessible enhanced entrance and pathway for the garden in cooperation with the Conservancy.
- Trusted Media Brands publishing group Reader’s Digest Partner — Donated boxes of family-friendly books to support the Little Free Library.
- WTW Partner — Collaborated with WTW employees on a volunteer project to repaint the park building's exterior features.
- Waterside Plaza Tenants Association Partner — Collaborated with Waterside Plaza Tenants Association leadership at a public event announcing the transformation of a former parking facility into a public pocket park.
strategies · 5
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Community-Engaged Stewardship and Advocacymethodology: community-engaged stewardshipBy engaging local organizations and individuals in stewardship and advocacy efforts, the organization improves park infrastructure and access, because sustained community involvement leads to more responsive, equitable, and lasting public space improvements.
- Equity-Centered Public Green Space Developmentmethodology: equity_plan_for_public_green_spaceBy implementing a phased equity plan, the organization ensures that green space improvements prioritize inclusivity, accessibility, diversity, and mental health, because equitable design leads to broader community participation and well-being.
- Multi-Use Public Space Designmethodology: multi-use public spaceBy adapting infrastructure for multi-sport and multi-program use, the organization maximizes recreational and cultural access in a space-constrained urban environment, because flexible design increases community utilization and inclusion.
- Nonprofit Conservancy Model for Public Park Stewardshipmethodology: nonprofit conservancy modelBy operating as a nonprofit conservancy, the organization leverages private funding and community engagement to improve and maintain public park space, because public resources alone are insufficient to meet maintenance and equity goals.
- Urban Habitat Restoration for Biodiversitymethodology: urban_habitat_restorationBy improving habitat conditions in the park, the organization supports increasing wildlife species, because enhancing urban biodiversity strengthens ecosystem resilience and public connection to nature.