In September 2007, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Queens Borough President Helen Marshall officially opened the most advanced green building in New York City -- Queens Botanical Garden’s new Visitor & Administration Center.

The Visitor & Administration Center is a veritable encyclopedia of green building techniques that conserve water and mitigate global warming. It has a planted green roof that minimizes storm water run-off; solar panels that generate 17% of the building’s electricity; geothermal heating and cooling that uses 55-degree water pumped from an aquifer to maintain the building’s climate; graywater recycling that cleans water from its sinks, dishwasher, and shower for use in the building’s public toilets; compost toilets for the Garden’s administrative staff; and bioswales that capture storm water to reduce pressure on the City’s overburdened sewer system.

The Visitor & Administration Center is the centerpiece of a $24 million capital improvement for the 39-acre Queens Botanical Garden that includes a renovated entry plaza and fountain at the Garden’s Main Street Gate, new Horticulture/Maintenance building, and new plant collections.

Tours of the Visitor & Administration Center can be arranged. Call 718-886-3800, ext. 230 for more information.