Grand Army Plaza Arch is getting a $8.9 million makeover

By Brooklyn Magazine Staff

The Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Arch that perches over Grand Army Plaza is getting a major spring cleaning.

Work has begun on a $8.9 million restoration project of the 134-year-old arch, which hasn’t received much TLC since the mid-1990s. The makeover includes replacing the arch’s roof, cleaning the brick and stones, improving the lighting to better showcase the arch and repairing interior elements such as the historic iron staircases to the roof.

The Prospect Park Alliance and the city’s parks department is spearheading the roughly year-long project and it was funded by the mayor’s office. However, the construction means that access will be limited and the organizers are asking people to use nearby crosswalks if they want to get through.

“The beloved Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Arch at Grand Army Plaza is a Brooklyn icon and an important gathering space for dialogue and protests that advance social justice,” said Morgan Monaco, president of Prospect Park Alliance, in a release.

Grand Army Plaza was built in 1867 as a formal entrance to the park, and the arch itself was installed in 1889. In 1892, it was dedicated to the Union troops who fought during the Civil War. According to the release, the top of arch is a “quadriga of Columbia, representing the United States, surrounded by two winged Victories who trumpet her arrival.”

While cars can still zip by the Arch, there is another plan afoot to potentially rethink the entire plaza.

Last November, the city’s Department of Transportation has begun the initial — presumably years-long — process of cutting cars and making Grand Army Plaza part of the Open Streets, connecting it to Vanderbilt and Underhill Avenues. There’s no specific design just yet. The agency has started seeking public input for how the space could be better uses for cyclists and pedestrians.