(Photo: Courtesy of NYC Parks Dept.)

Freshkills Park won’t officially open until 2030, but on April 4, the Urban Park Rangers will start giving tours of the park-in-progress atop the former Staten Island landfill. Three of the four giant garbage mounds are already covered with grass and trees after having been “capped” with protective layers of plastic and soil. Plans for the 2,200-acre space, rendered here, include five different parks, which will open to the public in stages. At the end of this year, the Owl Hollow soccer fields will be ready for action, along with some LEED-certified “ecological comfort stations” (bathrooms). The tour highlight: standing atop a 140-foot-high mound for a 360-degree view of lower Manhattan and all four Staten Island bridges. Tours for individuals and groups are free and can be booked at nyc.gov/parks/freshkills.

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