A “Jumbled Mess” at a Busy Riverside Park Entrance Just Got a Colorful Makeover

One of Riverside Park’s busiest entrances has a brand-new look, and if all goes to plan, it’ll be bursting with color by next spring.

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The West 90s Neighborhood Association announced this week that a large, newly landscaped garden has been installed at the 95th Street entrance to the park. The garden is a Riverside Park Conservancy project. It was funded by local residents and a substantial grant from 222 Riverside Drive, according to the association.

The garden has more than 100 native and colorful plants and shrubs, chosen to complement four new cherry and redbud trees. The new plantings include echinacea, purple dome aster, amsonia, oakleaf hydrangea, purple phlox, American witch hazel and two varieties of daffodils.

It’s a big change from what the spot looked like not long ago. Edward Soloway, the association’s co-president, shared photos with I Love the Upper West Side that were taken this summer, partway through what he called the first cleanup there in years. “Already removed here are dead tree limbs, construction debris, and trash,” he said. “It was a jumbled mess!”

Soloway said the Conservancy is “a champion of working with local groups who can identify upgrades then raise funds.” He’s been leading local projects like this one for many years. Besides a number of improvements on Joan of Arc Island, he said he’s proudest of a program he started with the Conservancy to plant trees in empty tree beds along all six miles of Riverside Drive. “I believe the number is 120 so far,” he said.

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The plants that went in Thursday are young, Soloway explained, and “will take root before the first hard freeze, then grow rapidly next spring.” He’s setting a high bar for how they’ll turn out. “I expect this garden to become as lush and colorful as the recent new park gardens along the river walk in the 60s,” he said.

When it’s in full bloom next spring, visitors entering at 95th Street will be greeted by “a lush display of color, texture, and fragrance,” according to the association.

“This garden represents the best possible outcome when neighbors come together to invest in the beauty and vitality of their community,” Soloway said in the announcement. “We are excited to watch this garden grow and welcome park enthusiasts to Riverside Park for years to come.”

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