NEW YORK CITY –
A makeshift aquarium that popped up this summer in a puddle beneath a leaky fire hydrant has been paved over, to the dismay of neighbours who turned the area into a hangout spot and goldfish shrine.
The city’s Department of Environmental Protection has long said the dribbling hydrant created a safety hazard. Workers filled the earthen area that formerly held the puddle Friday morning, and yellow tape cordoned off a patch of freshly poured concrete around the repaired hydrant, leaving it looking like the city’s smallest-ever crime scene.
“Oh my God,” said Sofia Talavera, 24, her hands raised to her head as she looked at the spot. “People actually took their time and their money to make it beautiful. This was literally the community coming together.”
The so-called Bed-Stuy Aquarium, named after the surrounding …