Community Pushes To Co-Name Inwood Street After Late Gardener

INWOOD, NY — Maria Lall could often be found working in Isham Park's gardens. Planting tulips, overseeing volunteers, shifting dirt, and spearheading the effort to keep the Inwood green space in a constant state of bloom.

The longtime Inwood resident died from cancer at the beginning of August. She was 62.

Now, the Upper Manhattan community is coming together in an effort to memorialize Lall's impact on the neighborhood with a street sign.

A petition was started earlier in September to co-name Isham Alley in Inwood as either Maria's Way or Maria Lall Way.

"We want to memorialize her by co-naming the path in Isham park known as Isham Alley as Maria Lall's way," organizers of the petition wrote. "This was the first space she transformed. Originally the south side was a barren piece of land full of garbage. Her inspiring vision and effort made our neighborhood a more beautiful and healthier place to live."

Her volunteer work also helped transform the north side of Isham Alley, a stretch of land that suffered from erosion next to Park Terrace East, the Inwood Hill Park Peninsula, and the Broadway side of Isham Park.

As of Thursday afternoon, 229 people have signed the petition. While anyone is encouraged to sign the petition, signatures from residents in the 10034 ZIP code are particularly valuable to making the street name a reality.

Organizers of the petition also understand that Isham Alley does not currently have a street sign at all, and asked locals to recommend another street in the area to honor Lall if a different block has to be chosen.

Grandpa's Pizza, at 4937 Broadway in Inwood, has pledged to financially support the street naming, according to a Facebook post by the Inwood Butterfly Sanctuary in Isham Park.

The Manhattan Times wrote an obituary for Lall in August, which you can read on its website.