Wine bottle corks are getting a second lease on life in New York City. Earlier this month, a New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) project in Brooklyn cut the ribbon on newly paved pathways and playground surfaces made of upcycled corks. The first-of-its-kind installation is part of the nonprofit Public Housing Community Fund’s (PHCF) $3.2 million initiative to renovate the open spaces at four of NYCHA’s public housing complexes.
PHCF partnered with Cork Collective — launched by architecture firm Rockwell Group in partnership with cork manufacturer Amorim in 2024 to craft structures like flooring and installation out of upcycled stoppers — and a host of other nonprofit organizations to design the $500,000 project that revamped the walkways and playspaces at Marlboro Houses in Gravesend, Brooklyn.
