The beloved Elizabeth Street Garden in Lower Manhattan will be preserved under a new agreement between City Hall and a local councilmember — and five times more affordable housing units will be created than what was called for under the city’s original plan to demolish the greenspace, City Hall said Monday.

The quiet urban respite — championed by the likes of Robert De Niro and Patti Smith in recent months — will remain untouched while more than 600 units of affordable housing will be built at three other locations, pending rezoning of the sites.

“Elizabeth Street Garden lives on,” Norman Siegel, leading attorney for Elizabeth Street Garden, said in a statement. “This beloved open green space and sculptural work of visual art will continue to serve the people of New York City as a needed public gathering place.

“The creation of hundreds of new affordable housing units, including affordable senior housing, is a win-win for all,” he added.

This is a developing story.

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