Community activists in Williamsburg were spending the night away from home Saturday to shed light on a standoff that they fear will doom the Bushwick Inlet Park project.

Dozens of people gathered at the site of the park project for a "sleep-in" demonstration. They're hoping to help save the project, which has been in the works for more than a decade.

The Bushwick Inlet Park was part of 2005 rezoning agreement to bring 27 acres of public green-space to an area that would soon see breakneck residential and commercial development. While a small part of the park has opened, much of it is yet to be completed.

Tying up the project is a parcel of land along the proposed site that the city doesn't own. The city has made an $100 million offer to acquire the land, but the property owner is playing hardball and put the parcel up for private auction.

Activists say losing the land to private developers will split the park in two and ruin it altogether. They hope their symbolic demonstration will spur negotiations so the city and property owner can come together on a mutually beneficial agreement.

The city has set an Aug. 8 deadline for its offer to be accepted.