June 5, 2026

Work Expected to Start in Fall Now That NYC DEP Has Awarded Construction Contract and Secured MTA Easement

Project Will Free Up Bronx Sewer Capacity, Improve Harlem River Water Quality and Add New Green Space for Residents

New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Lisa F. Garcia today announced that construction to restore Tibbetts Brook above ground, an engineering feat known as ‘daylighting,’ is anticipated to begin in Fall 2026. DEP recently awarded a $149.5 million construction contract for the project. In addition, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has finalized and signed the easement agreement with the City to allow the brook to pass through a new conduit beneath MTA property, restoring the connection to the Harlem River. With these final pieces in place, DEP will continue advancing the Tibbetts Brook daylighting project and deliver one of New York City’s largest investments in green infrastructure.

“We’re proud to mark these important milestones on Tibbetts Brook daylighting project — DEP’s most ambitious green infrastructure project — and I am grateful to the local community, NYC Parks and the MTA for their partnership,” said DEP Commissioner Lisa F. Garcia. “By restoring the brook above ground we’re reducing flooding and relieving pressure on our sewers, especially during heavy rainstorms, to create a cleaner, healthier Harlem River.”

“The Tibbetts Brook daylighting project will be a major victory for the City’s environmental infrastructure, adding critical new greenspace while bolstering the health of the Harlem River and alleviating flooding in the Bronx. It will also create a significant new greenway route, allowing pedestrians and cyclists to enjoy new recreational opportunities,” said NYC Parks Commissioner Tricia Shimamura. “We’re proud to collaborate with DEP on this initiative and grateful to the MTA for advancing a major step in this project that will allow work to start this fall.”

“The Daylighting of Tibbetts Brook has been a dream of the Bronx Council for Environmental Quality for the past 30 years,” said Karen Argenti, Tibbetts Advisory Group.“This project turns a vacant garbage strewn railroad into a natural area with water and green features. The environmental benefits and biodiversity will mitigate critical climate challenges and cool the surrounding area. We are so excited that this next step will get us closer to the completion. We want to thank the NYC Mayor and our friends at the DEP for this progress.”

By restoring the brook to the surface and taking its water out of the sewer, the project will free up capacity in the Bronx’s sewer system, reducing combined sewer overflows into the Harlem River during rainstorms by over 215 million gallons each year. This will improve the health and water quality of the Harlem River and reduce unnecessary energy costs and emissions to treat the brook water at the Wards Island Wastewater Resource Recovery Facility. In addition, the project creates new parkland for New Yorkers with over a mile-long extension of the Harlem River-Putnam Greenway along the brook’s path.

Until the 18^th Century, the brook flowed from the City of Yonkers through the Bronx and out into the Harlem River. It was then dammed to create a mill pond (now Hester and Piero’s Mill Pond), and by 1912, the brook was fully buried and diverted into the city’s sewer system. The daylighting project will bring the brook back above ground for over a mile from the Mill Pond to West 230th Street through a parcel of property purchased by the City for $11.2 million from CSX Transportation in 2023. NYC Parks worked with DEP to develop a design that would daylight the stream and create a greenway within the old rail corridor.

At West 232^nd Street, the daylighted brook channel will transition to an underground conduit that will pass beneath MTA’s yard operated by the Metro North Railroad in close proximity to active railroad tracks. This conduit allows the brook to connect to Harlem River, restoring its natural outlet. Without an easement from MTA to construct and operate this conduit, it would not be possible to complete this project as designed.

This effort is part of a broader agreement between New York City and New York State to continue improving the ecological health of the city’s waterbodies.

About the Department of Environmental Protection

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing approximately 1 billion gallons of high-quality drinking water each day to nearly 10 million residents, including 8.3 million in New York City. The water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the city, comprising 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,500 miles of sewer lines and 96 pump stations take wastewater to 14 in-city treatment plants. DEP also protects the health and safety of New Yorkers by enforcing the Air and Noise Codes and asbestos rules. For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on X and Instagram.