\u201cWe\u2019re very much aligned,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cWe\u2019re working on the same waterfront, in essence\u2026 At the RETI Center we do education, workforce training and these projects, and the Dredgers are really bringing that community point and that access, and giving people actual experience on the waterfront. It very much feels like it\u2019s complementary.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Water-testing.jpg\")
A water testing (pictured) demonstration will be presented by the RETI Center during City of Water day.Photo courtesy of RETI Center<\/p>\n
Sophie Fenwick, one of the organization\u2019s featured Brooklyn-based<\/a> monthly artists, kicks off the day with a photo exhibit and film screening featuring scenes of the canal. Her film is accompanied by a performance from musician Leslie Braver.<\/p>\n As a strong supporter of the local arts, integrating the performances into the Boathouse\u2019s City of Water Day celebrations was routine to them, according to Dredger\u2019s captain Celeste LeCompte.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHaving art and music and other creative things brings down people who may not really be interested in the environment and the water parts of this, but then they get that as an incidental,\u201d said LeCompte. \u201cThat\u2019s something that\u2019s really important to how, I think a lot of our work at the Dredgers happens.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Later in the afternoon, the RETI Center is presenting on water quality and the history of the Gowanus and Red Hook waterfront. Alongside providing a day of fun activities, City of Water Day also aims to educate New Yorkers about caring for our local water.<\/p>\n \u201cJust seeing people breathe and take in their water, it underscores it,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cIt\u2019s one thing to read about it. It\u2019s one thing to watch a documentary about it, but it\u2019s another thing to be in it, to be involved in it, and it creates more of a long-term stewardship.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe canal is such a rich local resource from an education and a creative perspective,\u201d Corinne Brenner, board member of the Gowanus Dredgers, added. \u201cYou know, no matter what you\u2019re interested in\u2026 there\u2019s something there for you to hook into.\u201d<\/p>\n Following the presentation, the Gowanus Dredgers are hosting a \u201ccommunity paddle and cleanup\u201d at the canal, open to all ages and skill levels. Residue picked up from the canal will be repurposed for the community, according to Dredgers board member Erica Eliason.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously that is beneficial for the canal, but this trash in particular will be used for an art exhibit that is going on a mini-golf site here in Gowanus,\u201d Eliason said. \u201cIt\u2019s a special trash pickup.\u201d<\/p>\n The day will close off with a musical showing from Brooklyn native psychedelic artist Herb Lore.\n<\/p>\n City of Water Day is not the only time New Yorkers can support the city\u2019s water conservation efforts. With the canal, even something as simple as educating yourself on combined sewer overflow (CSO) can make a difference, according to Eliason.<\/p>\n \u201cJust changing your behaviors when it\u2019s raining, not taking a shower then, not flushing the toilet because that will be discharged into the canal,\u201d Eliason said. \u201cI think that is something that, an individual person, if they know more about how that works, that\u2019s a behavior they can change.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Year-round, the Dredgers<\/a> and RETI Center<\/a>\u00a0offer volunteer opportunities for anyone who is interested to get involved and support their efforts.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Gowanus Canal, despite its reputation for pollution, also tells a story of transformation that Dredgers board members hope is recognized with the celebration.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople might have a lot of preconceived notions about what\u2019s going on with the canal, or have sort of a vague sense that it\u2019s polluted, but they don\u2019t quite know what\u2019s going on,\u201d Brenner said. \u201cHaving events like this is also a really great way to introduce people to the facts of what\u2019s happening and that there\u2019s progress being made.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think one of the great things about the Dredgers is trying to, together, imagine a different future and what is it that we want for this canal and our neighborhoods, and realizing that, together, we actually have a lot of power to try and make that happen.\u201d said Brenner.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Gowanus Canal will become a hub of celebration for Brooklyn this City of Water Day. The regional…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":304955,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[98,100,99,115548,115549,3242,464,115550,9,24,12,370,63,18392,115551],"class_list":["post-304954","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-city-of-water","tag-city-of-water-day","tag-environment","tag-gowanus","tag-gowanus-dredgers","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-news","tag-newsletter","tag-nyc","tag-red-hook","tag-reti-center"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304954","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=304954"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304954\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/304955"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=304954"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=304954"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=304954"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Screenshot-2026-07-24-at-12.17.56-PM.jpg\")
The Gowanus Canal will serve as the backdrop for City of Water Day celebrations focused on waterfront access, conservation and community connection.Photo courtesy of RETI Center<\/p>\n