Tour of Untermyer Park & Gardens
Sunday, October 15, 2023
estimated start time 10:30 a.m.
945 North Broadway, Yonkers, NY 10701
$35 per person
Alumni and guests are invited to join AFA for a walking tour of Untermyer Park & Gardens. Led by two expert horticulturalists, we will explore the ‘jewel of the property’, the Walled Garden, which draws inspiration from Indo-Persian gardens of antiquity, and enjoy sublime views of the Hudson River from the Temple of Love and the rock and stream garden (pictured below). After our tour, we recommend guests enjoy lunch at a local Italian restaurant around 1:30pm. We are delighted that Attingham alumnus Dr. Richard Iversen ’89, professor emeritus of Urban Horticulture and Design at Farmingdale State College, and Barbara F. Israel, Vice Chair of the Untermyer Garden Conservancy, will join us!
Originally conceived by Samuel and Minnie Untermyer in 1917, the gardens encompassed around 150 acres with more than 60 greenhouses, but fell into neglect following Untermyer’s death in 1940. Founded by Stephen F. Byrns in 2011, the Untermyer Garden Conservancy is working hard to restore, interpret and enhance 43-acres of public gardens that combine exceptional horticulture, monumental architecture, and multicultural design in a majestic natural setting. In partnership with the Yonkers Parks Department and input from Marco Polo Stufano, Founding Director of Horticulture at Wave Hill, Head Gardener Timothy Tilghman has led an ambitious restoration, which is “dazzling the garden-loving public with its brilliant design.” Garden antiques specialist Barbara Israel and her team described their visit recently in Focal Points (full article here). More information about the gardens can be found here.
Registration: Please RSVP by completing the online form (click here). Alternatively, you can email or call (212) 682-6840. Your attendance is confirmed once you’ve made your payment, preferably by credit card. If you would like to mail your payment, please kindly take note of our new mailing address.
Transportation: Please consult the helpful instructions provided on the site’s webpage, “Hours and Directions” (link here). For those traveling by train from New York City, Hudson Line trains presently leave on the hour from Grand Central Terminal. Please check back for any updates to the start time, based on adjustments to the train’s scheduled arrival at Graystone Station, after September 11. We recommend consulting Metro North’s travel planner to arrive on the 10:03am train.
Kindly note that the Graystone train station does not have a taxi stand. Untermyer Park & Gardens recommends calling Family Taxi at (914) 963-2222. You may also take the number 6 Bee-Line bus at the station and disembark at Tudor Woods/Gateway Ave, before walking up Gateway Ave and then north on North Broadway to the entrance at 945 North Broadway. Be mindful that the gardens are a 20-min uphill walk from the Graystone station.
For those planning to drive, there is a sizeable (75-spaces), complimentary, on-site parking lot, as well as coin-operated metered and un-metered street parking on North Broadway. Should the parking lot be full, please seek street parking.
Note: AFA may arrange for transport from NYC via private shuttle, so please indicate your interest on the registration form. The cost of the van will then be shared equally among the riders.
More information to assist with your arrival can be found on the garden’s webpage, “Visit” (link here). Please also consult Google Maps to plan your journey.
Attire & Accessibility: Please wear comfortable waking shoes, as the tour requires some physical stamina and the ability to traverse stairs, and uneven, unpaved terrain. For those seeking a less strenuous experience, the path leading to the Walled Garden, and the paths within the Walled Garden are flat and covered with fine gravel. Inside, there are lovely benches and opportunities to relax and enjoy the scenery in this exquisite space.
Weather Policy: In light of inclement weather, the tour may be re-scheduled for the following Sunday, October 22, 2023, beginning at the same time. If AFA must cancel the tour, we will notify all participants no later than 9:00am the day of the tour.
Snacks & Optional Lunch: Upon arrival, AFA will provide guests with a light snack and bottled water. Untermyer staff recommend we lunch at the nearby Italian restaurant, Gianna’s, located at 1034 N. Broadway. You can check out the menu with sandwiches, salads, pastas, and pizzas here. The restaurant is about a 10-minute, straight walk along N. Broadway (0.5-miles) from the Untermyer entrance. Please remember to indicate your interest in staying for lunch when you register (click here).
Tickets are limited, please register by October 1, 2023. We fully expect this tour to sell out, so please reserve your tickets today!
Images courtesy Unterymer Garden Conservancy.