Greening Canal Street

Work began to build a temporary lawn at the triangle Varick-Canal triangle in time for the Tribeca Film Festival although it remains unclear when work will begin on the permanent park there.

After years of design and financial woes, something is finally happening at the eyesore of a triangle on Canal St.

The broken concrete was cleared, soil was brought in and a lawn will be planted by the end of the week –April 14, according to Carli Smith, a Parks Dept. spokesperson. The triangle between Varick St. and Ave. of the Americas was once a parking lot and a Holland Tunnel disabled vehicle drop – soon, it will be a sunning lawn for New Yorkers to enjoy all summer long.

The Tribeca Film Festival footed the bill for the temporary lawn that will be open until September. There have been plans to build a permanent park with a sculpture fountain, flowers and benches for five years. The Lower Manhattan Development Corp., the agency overseeing the redevelopment of the neighborhood, announced a few months ago that it will help pay some of the costs for the permanent park, but Smith said Parks won’t be able to put the contract out to bid until the agency has all of the funds. She did not say how much more money is needed or when work on the permanent plan will begin.