If you’ve been searching for a spot to cool down with the kids during the brutal summer heat, Gravesend just unveiled a game-changer.
A brand-new 7,200-square-foot playground and public park just opened at the Marlboro Houses in Brooklyn, and it’s turning heads for a very unique reason.
Dubbed “Village Vibes,” the space features soft, winding pathways constructed from roughly 450,000 recycled wine and champagne corks. Sourced directly from bars, restaurants, and hotels right here in the five boroughs, this is officially the first installation of its kind in New York City.
A massive eco-friendly upgrade
The genius behind the cork pathways is The Cork Collective, a joint venture between Rockwell Group, Amorim, and BlueWell. After collecting the used corks from local hospitality partners, the team shipped them off to a Wisconsin recycling plant to be cleaned, ground down, and reformed into a highly sustainable building material.
But why cork? Aside from giving millions of discarded stoppers a second life and diverting waste from landfills, it’s actually a major safety upgrade.
If you’ve ever had to peel your kid off a scorching hot plastic slide in August, you’ll be thrilled to know that cork surfacing can reduce temperatures by 20 to 30 percent during the summer.
It’s naturally heat-resistant, keeping the ground significantly cooler than standard rubber or plastic. Plus, the material is totally non-toxic, antimicrobial, odorless, and perfectly water-permeable.
Designed by the community, for the community
The cork path is lined with vibrant, neon-yellow sensory structures designed by The Urban Conga and CJI. Rather than building boring, single-use equipment, these custom features encourage open-ended interaction so residents of all ages can enjoy them.
The project, which is part of the Public Housing Community Fund’s (PHCF) $3.2 million Green Space Connections, was heavily shaped by the community itself.
Children living at the NYCHA complex submitted their own design ideas, and local leaders made sure the new space addressed resident concerns—like chronic flooding—by incorporating rain gardens and pollinator plantings co-designed by Brooklyn-based Field Form.
📍 Marlboro Houses (West 11th Street between Avenues W and X, Gravesend, Brooklyn)