User:RoySmith/drafts/Bissel Gardens

Bissel Gardens is a community garden in the Wakefield section of the Bronx; measuring 2.5 acre, it is the largest community garden in New York City. It occupies space surrounding the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) 239th Street maintenance yard which was previously used as a dumping ground. The area includes a children's garden which hosts educational programs, a veteran's garden used by local veterans to grow food, and a "Food for Others" space which provides vegetables to local aid organizations. Local residents can purchase produce during the growing season. Crops have included tomatoes, peppers, onions, string beans. collard greens, cucumbers, spinach, basil, oregano, and sage.

Permission to use the space was acquired from the MTA in 1992 by a community group led by Theresa Scalera. The group removed junk which included old cars, vending machines, and other rubble.

In 2023, the gardens obtained funding from the New York Restoration Project's Gardens for the City program to make improvements; this was the program's largest renovation project to date. Renovations included carting away 15 yd3 of organic waste and 8 yd3 of trash. Metal and wooden beds were filled with 70 yd3 of new soil along with compost and mulch. Pathways were constructed using 16 yd3 of stone dust and 35 yd3 of woodchips. New benches, trellises, and shade structures were installed and existing picnic tables and sheds were repainted.

Bissel Avenue
The garden is named after Bissel Avenue, which no longer exists. The street appeared on a 1900 map as Vernon Parkway and on a 1950 Bronx street map as Bissel Avenue. At the time the garden was created, Bissel Avenue had been abandoned and was a dirt road which was incorportated into the garden area. , the official New York City street map no longer shows Bissel Avenue.