NEW YORK (AP) — A makeshift aquarium that emerged this summer in a puddle under a leaking hydrant has been paved over, to the dismay of neighbors who turned the area into a hangout and goldfish sanctuary.

The city’s department for environmental protection has long said the dribbling hydrant created a safety hazard. Workers filled the dirt area that formerly held the puddle Friday morning, and yellow tape cordoned off a patch of freshly poured concrete around the repaired fire hydrant, making it look like the city’s smallest crime scene ever.

“Oh my God,” said Sofia Talavera, her hands raised to her head as she surveyed the scene. “People actually took their time and money to make it beautiful. This was literally the community coming together.”

The so-called Bed-Stuy Aquarium, named after the surrounding Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant, was formed when the leaking fire hydrant carved out the shallow pool next to a tree bed on a residential street and residents filled it with store-bought goldfish.

The dam was controversial from the start. Some of the fish were “rescued” during the summer by people who care about their welfare. That upset others, who said the fish were fine, filled the pool and set up a watch.

After media attention and some donations, organizers continued to expand the venue, adding signs, decorations and seating. A sign designed to look like an official Parks Department plaque read “BEDSTUY AQUARIUM,” and a telephone pole was painted with palm-sized goldfish surrounded in blue.

The pond was easy for tourists to find after it became searchable on Google Maps. Two visitors from California who came to the site Friday morning said they had planned to send a picture to friends in Los Angeles who were obsessed from afar.

“Now we have to break the news,” said Adam Aguilar, a visual artist. His friend placed a bouquet of flowers next to two flickering candles at an impromptu memorial.

It always seemed inevitable that the fish would eventually have to be removed. The fire department needs hydrants to function. Winter was coming.

The fire service fixed the hydrant on Tuesday, but residents quickly filled the pond with water and fish. Videos on social media showed testy exchanges between locals and fire department workers and police cover the cement layers.

The Department of Environmental Protection said in a statement that it “looks forward to working with community members to find a suitable alternative location for this impromptu gem,” adding, “This allows us to keep New Yorkers safe by ensuring that the previously leaking fire hydrant does not freeze and becomes unusable.”

The remaining goldfish were removed and placed in a bucket, the department said.

Some residents expressed optimism that the pond could be moved to a nearby community garden, while others are waiting to convert an abandoned storefront on the block into an indoor aquarium and hangout space. Organizers most involved in those efforts declined to comment.

On his way to work, Jon Frier passed by the site and joked with friends, “Does anyone have a jackhammer?”

He paused to try to draw a goldfish in the wet concrete. Across the street, an employee in an environmental protection truck warned him not to honk, backed up by a police officer in another vehicle.

“They just can’t let us get anything, can they? I can’t believe Eric Adams,” Frier said, referring to the city’s mayor.

Adams’ media team did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

City officials have sometimes clashed or negotiated with residents over the use of fire hydrants, which have long been mandated to create cooling spray zones during hot summer months. A compromise was eventually reached where residents can apply for a permit to use a low-flow sprinkler, loaned and installed by a firefighter.

For Talavera, the disappearance of the aquarium means the loss of a late-night hangout that, unlike city parks, could not be closed at night.

After New York Liberty won the WNBA national championship recently, she posted a grainy picture of the fire hydrant on Instagram. It read: “last night was so amazing I had to go to the aquarium to celebrate.”