Asphalt Green to Welcome New Director

After 20 years, Carol Tweedy is retiring as the community organization's executive director

Yorkville Asphalt Green, the not-for-profit community organization headquartered on York Avenue and East 90th Street, will be welcoming a new executive director this month.

After serving as the executive director of Asphalt Green for the past two decades, Carol Tweedy will be stepping down, and Maggy Siegel will be replacing her on July 1.

Tweedy has seen the organization through massive changes, and said that she's most proud of the culture of excellence she's worked hard to establish.

"I have always felt it to be an honor to be entrusted with the role of executive director," she said. "The board is incredible ? sophisticated, committed, appropriately demanding. I served for 20 years at their pleasure."

Tweedy also said that the greatest rewards of her work came from small moments with kids and parents who used Asphalt Green's facilities and programs. She remembered a time when a parent told her that since his son joined their basketball league, the two had something new to talk about together. At a swimming event, an 8-year-old boy grabbed Tweedy by the leg and exclaimed, "This is the best day of my whole life!"

Another proud moment came when 17-year-old swimmer Lia Neal won a bronze medal at the Summer Olympics in 2012 in the 4x100 freestyle relay. Neal trained at Asphalt Green on the swim team, and Tweedy said that her victory in the Olympics also fulfilled a long-held dream for the organization.

"When you run an organization, you articulate dreams, you have to do that in order to have vision for the organization," Tweedy said. "Our swim team was the jewel in the crown. [Our dream was that] someday a member of the swim team who was on scholarship and a child of color would stand on the blocks and win a medal in the Olympics."

Another memorable moment for Tweedy was a less happy time, when she was recently arrested at a protest against the city's construction of the Marine Transfer Station next door to Asphalt Green. Her successor will take her place on the front lines of the continued battle against the trash facility.

"My greatest challenges are in preserving the quality of the properties and maintaining the Asphalt Green experience while studying and developing future growth opportunities," said Siegel in an email. "This, of course, in respect of the immediate challenge Asphalt Green faces ? getting the City of New York to address the serious concerns around the health, safety and traffic risks created by the East 91st Street Marine Transfer Station."

Siegel comes to the job from a background in luxury retail as well as non-profit work. She previously worked with companies including Dylan's Candy Bar, Chanel USA, Coach and Tiffany & Co. before serving as acting CEO of CancerCare.

"My experience has been in delivering a great user experience with exceptional customer service," Siegel said of her background. "I'm thrilled to be joining an organization with such high standards and I'm sure I will be utilizing both of my for-profit and not-for-profit background as executive director."

Tweedy said that she and Siegel will have the opportunity to work together for several weeks to transition her into the new position, which also includes heading Asphalt Green's second campus in Battery Park City, which opened last year.