Construction has officially commenced on the long-awaited Green-Wood Visitor Center, as observed during a stroll past the historic Weir Greenhouse last week.
Although much of the activity is obscured from street view, a peek through the construction fence windows revealed workers on site, with foundations laid and concrete walls beginning to rise above ground level.
The recently restored greenhouse at the corner of 25th Street and Fifth Avenue will be the centerpiece for a sleek design by Architecture Research Office. The new building at 749 Fifth Ave., clad in terra-cotta panels, will wrap around two sides of the greenhouse and include gallery, programming, and staff space.
While the restoration of the greenhouse was approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission back in 2015, the final design for the visitor complex wasn’t approved until 2021. The fence around the now-gleaming greenhouse came down temporarily last summer as preparation for construction began.
The timeline for the project projected construction was to begin in March of this year and it appears the prediction is on target. The Green-Wood Center, as the entire complex will be known, is slated to open in the spring of 2025.
The historic Green-Wood Cemetery is working to raise $34 million for the construction of the new complex. The organization had already raised $18 million from state, federal, and other funders by last fall when an additional $500,000 in state funds was allocated to the project.
This story first appeared on Brooklyn Paper’s sister site Brownstoner
