Flower Tower: Landscapers Show Property Owners How To Turn Rooftops Into Gardens
Alive Structures
The Kingsland Wildflowers rooftop is located atop Broadway Stages in Greenpoint.
BY ELIZABETH WINN
These green thumbs are taking gardening to new heights!
A Greenpoint-based urban landscaping group is pushing Kings County property owners to take a top-down approach to environmental sustainability by transforming their rooftops into verdant gardens.
“I believe that New York City needs nature and green roofs are the only place left in New York City to create a natural habitat,” said Marni Majorelle, founder of Alive Structures, located at 130 Diamond St. between Meserole and Norman avenues.
Last month, Majorelle and her team at Alive Structures hosted a panel to discuss their green-roof movement alongside other environmental advocates at a rooftop meadow, called Kingsland Wildflowers, located atop Broadway Stages in Greenpoint, which the green thumbs used as an example of rooftop gardneing done right, before discussing how sky farms can help their borough weather global warming.
“Green roofs are not just pretty or decoration,” Majorelle said. “[Green roofs are] an absolute necessity in this city as we move into a hotter and wetter climate.”
The elevated oases provide a variety of environmental benefits, including absorbing and retaining stormwater, reducing temperatures, cutting energy costs, improving air quality, and creating more homes for birds, bees, and creepy crawlies high in the sky, according to Majorelle.
However, specific structural requirements and hefty installation cost make Majorelle’s green-roof movement a tough sell for many property owners, and she praised Broadway Stages — a sound stage and equipment supplier for television productions — for jumping on the bandwagon!