“It is Very Important for my Kids to Grow Up in a Diverse Neighborhood” — Rita Kwong Shares Her West Side Story

Landscape designer Rita Kwong has worked on projects like Little Island — but in her spare time she has the neighborhood in her sights, running Hell’s Kitchen Conservation Corps. This is Rita’s West Side Story.

So what’s your New York story? Born here, or just arrived?
I was born and raised in Hong Kong. My family immigrated to Los Angeles when I was young. I studied geography at UCLA and I worked as a GIS [Geographic Information System] Specialist in a public health litigation support company in Santa Monica after college. I had the opportunity to work on many environmental justice cases related to groundwater and air contamination.

After a few years, I decided to go to graduate school to study city planning, thinking that urban planning would provide solutions to environmental racism. I attended Cornell University for my dual masters in planning and landscape architecture. Upon graduation, I moved to New York City for work. I had a few internships in NYC while I was still in grad school and I knew I wanted to make NYC my home, because the energy reminded me of my hometown in Hong Kong.

Another practical reason to come to NYC was that at Cornell, my landscape architecture program required us to study over 150 species of native and adapted plants in the New England region. I studied so hard for that class and it would make sense for me to work in New York so that I could practice what I’ve learned. I didn’t want to move back to California and re-learn a different regional palette.

What was your first job? What do you do now?
It was 2011 when I finished graduate school, a few years after the 2008 Lehman Brothers financial crisis. The market couldn’t have been worse and nobody was hiring at the time. My family wasn’t in a position to support me financially and I had to find a way to support myself. I picked up a few freelancing jobs at different landscape firms just so I could pay rent and buy food. I reached out to one of the places I interned in the summer of 2009 and the marketing director generously gave me his entire contact list of all the landscape architecture firms that he had relationships with. I cold-called every single firm until I finally got an offer at the RBA Group (now known as NV5). I started as a landscape designer.

The next year, Hurricane Sandy hit, and I started to become heavily involved in infrastructure and public space projects, such as the reconstruction of the Rockaways Boardwalk. I have also worked at MNLA, where I grew to become the landscape architect that I am today. I’ve worked on sections of Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway, Hudson Streetscape, Spring Street Park, Little Island and many other projects. Currently I am at SCAPE, which is a firm known for climate resiliency planning and nature-based designs. They’re most well known for projects such as Oyster-tecture and Living Breakwaters in Staten Island.

Outside of work, I run a volunteer group called Hell’s Kitchen Conservation Corps , where we promote native plants in tree pits and parks. We focus on stewardship and youth education. The US Department of Homeland Security has designated landscape architecture as a STEM discipline. I feel a sense of duty to introduce my profession to more students so that we have more bright minds to explore issues related to climate change, from stormwater management and sea level rise to decarbonization, urban heat and beyond.

What’s your favorite New York minute (or moment) so far?
As a landscape architect, I always feel proud when I see people enjoying the spaces I’ve built. My best moment is bringing my kids to my projects and seeing them have fun. I brought them to Little Island — a project that I’ve worked on from design through construction — for a pop-up family show on a Saturday. The kids had such a great time, and so did other park visitors. I felt so grateful to be part of the dream team on this dream project. It was so much hard work (it was built during the pandemic!) but it was worth it. I know I’ve given something precious to the city I love, and a legacy for my kids to remember me by.

Share with us why you love Hell’s Kitchen
I have been living in Hell’s Kitchen since 2012. I love Hell’s Kitchen because of the diversity. As a member of the AAPI / BIPOC community, it is very important for my kids to grow up in a diverse neighborhood and to have friends from different backgrounds. I always worry about hate crimes towards Asians, but I believe that hate is rooted in fear, and one way to overcome fear is to go outside of our comfort zone, connect and establish trust outside of the Asian community. Through Hell’s Kitchen Conservation Corps, I have met so many kind and supportive neighbors and they are the reasons why I love Hell’s Kitchen.

What’s your superpower or hidden talent?
This is a superpower I used to have but I’ve lost it after becoming a mom. I used to have a good photographic memory. I had once played a game with my friends to see how many numeric digits one could memorize in 10 secs. I won the game by memorizing 15 digits. Most of my friends could only do five or six. These days, I would be happy if I remember to pack my kids’ water bottles in their backpacks. It is the most basic thing but I always seem to forget.

What else should we know about you?
I am an avid reader and I have a Nook e-reader that is over 10 years old. I have over 1,000 books on my device. I love non-fiction. My favorite subjects are financial investment, business, biography, current affairs and politics, environment, science and technology, and sociology. Between work, HKCC, and family and kids, I rarely have any downtime to read, so having an e-reader really helps, as I can do quick 25-min reading on the subway on my daily commute. I also collect books related to ecological gardening. Benjamin Vogt and Roy Diblik are my current obsession.

Rita’s Favorite Hell’s Kitchen Places

Noodies Thai Kitchen — 830 9th Avenue (bw W54/55th St)
Dining out with little children can be quite stressful for parents, especially when you have picky eaters. I love Noodies because of the relaxed family vibe, friendly staff and kid-friendly menu. My older daughter loves their Tom Yum noodle soup and they always make a mild version for her. Everything tastes homemade and very reasonably priced.

Ho Ho Té — 805 8th Avenue (bw W48/49th St)
Bubble tea is an important part of Asian culture. You usually go with a friend for an afternoon pick-me-up or just grab-and-go as you hang out with friends. My kids and I go to Ho Ho Te after a long day of school and we just chat away. It’s quality bonding time for me. I always get their popcorn chicken and oolong milk tea with bubbles.

Ground Central Coffee Company — 888 8th Avenue (bw W52/53rd St)
There are many great coffee shops in Hell’s Kitchen, but Ground Central has a special place in my heart for two reasons. The first reason being they have a cozy lounge / seating room that is perfect for small group gatherings. I love the staff’s book list and display. The soft leather armchairs would be great for someone to sip coffee and read.  The other important reason is that they carry a variety of delicacies from local food providers, including scones from my friend’s bakery shop “The Hungry Gnome”! I love a cold brew with extra oat milk, and a blueberry white chocolate scone. My life is complete with these two in my hands.

Cha Pa’s Noodles and Grill — 314 W52nd Street (bw 8/9th Ave)
Growing up in LA, it was easy to find yummy, affordable and authentic pho — Vietnamese noodle soup. In New York, the Vietnamese community is smaller and it’s not easy to find a good authentic bowl of pho. One day, I went to the post office on 52nd Street and I passed by Cha Pa. I checked out their menu and saw an offering of bone-in short rib pho bowls. That’s a clear sign that this place is serious about their broth. That day I picked up a Super Bowl and Chicken Pho. And I pretty much order the same things every time I go.

Delphinium Home — 353 W47th Street (bw 8/9th Ave)
Delphinium is my go-to when I need a special gift for a friend. They have fun and silly gifts that are great for all ages. From home gifts to stationery, they have a little bit of everything. One year I got a silly fart machine keychain for my daughter as a holiday gift and it instantly became the most beloved item in our household, bringing endless laughter and joy.

UT 47 Manhattan — 358 W47th Street (bw 8/9th Ave)
UT47 is a place I love to go with my kids after play time at Ramon Aponte Playground. I love that they have a creative menu of vegan and vegetarian food that is Korean-inspired. The kids love their mandu and taco from the sit-down restaurant. On their cafe / to-go side, we like their macarons and mermaid latte.

Emmy Squared Pizza — 311 W48th Street (bw 8/9th Ave)
Corner Slice at Gotham West Market used to be the family go-to pizza joint. Ever since they closed, we have been looking for pizza of similar style — square shape, crispy bottom, cheesy crust — and we were so excited when we tried Emmy. It was everything we were looking for and better. We really enjoy the Colony pizza. The combination of pickled jalapeños and honey is just fireworks in the mouth — a balance between heat and sweetness, and makes you want to go one bite after another.

Nan Xiang Express — 654 9th Avenue (bw W45/46th St)
I have fond memories of going to tofu shops with my grandma, my mom and my sister, and we would watch tofu masters make fresh tofu in the shop. They would sell block tofu of different firmness, fresh soy milk, homemade tofu pudding, bean curd sticks and other soy products. As a kid, it was always a treat to go to the tofu shop to get a cup of fresh sweetened soy milk and a tofu pudding in osmanthus syrup. At Nan Xiang Express, I’ve recently tried their cold soy milk and it was so fresh, it brought back my childhood memory of the family tofu shop. While most people would go to Nan Xiang Express for their soup dumplings, I always get a cold soy milk and I would sample different things on the menu depending on my kids’ appetite.

The Oasis Cafe — 857 9th Avenue (bw W55/56th St)
I go to Oasis Cafe for their desserts. I’m not a huge fan of frosting and I tend to prefer fresh cream on cakes. I’ve tried a few of their cheesecakes and mousse cakes and they were all creamy and fluffy, not too dense or overly sweet. I also love that they use a custard cream for their tarts. I love their chocolate raspberry cheesecake and black and white mousse cake.

Holey Cream — 791 9th Avenue (bw W52/53rd St)
Holey Cream is known for their donut ice cream sandwiches and I get them for my kids on special occasions. All of their staff are super friendly and kind to the kids. On a regular day, we would stop by for ice-cream. You can’t go wrong with any of the flavors. My personal favorite is “holey moley”.

Anything else you’d like to tell us?
Please follow Hell’s Kitchen Conservation Corps on instagram @hkconservationcorps . The City needs to get ready for climate change and planting natives is part of the solution for stormwater management and resiliency. We need more green infrastructure to supplement the existing grey infrastructure that is aging and over capacity. You can support us by donating, volunteering or just spreading the word. Your support today will pay dividends for the future generations.

You can follow the Hell’s Kitchen Conservation Corps on Instagram at @hkconservationcorps and check out their website . If you know someone who would make a great West Side Story (or you would like to nominate yourself), please fill in this form — w42st.info/WSSnominations .

You can check out more West Side Stories and reader recommendations on W42ST’s Hell’s Kitchen Local App .

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