A popular park in Fort Greene is now at the center of a controversy.

Residents are dismayed at the Parks Department's plan to cut down dozens of old trees, pave over grass and greenery, and replace them with a concrete plaza.

Residents say the park is used for activities on a regular basis. They say the Parks Department has been working on a parks without borders program that has not been transparent. Residents who live near Fort Greene Park say they have taken the city to court twice.

The first time, they say they demanded transparency from redacted paperwork concerning the state of the park and recommendations for changes. Residents won that lawsuit.

The unredacted report showed that the recommendations of the landscape architect were consistent with what residents want. That's why the parks department redacted it.

Now, they have filed a second lawsuit asking the city to conduct an environmental review of the impact of cutting down the trees and removing the grass. One person referred to it as a frying pan effect, because without the trees and all the cement, it's just going to capture heat.

A spokesperson from the Parks Department told News 12, "We don't comment on active litigation. Please refer to file court papers regarding all details of Fort Greene Park."