Tag: Capital Projects

Improving Neighborhood Parks: Epiphany Playground

September 7, 2015

NYC Parks and the Prospect Park Alliance have unveiled the design for the $2.9 million renovation of Epiphany Playground in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The Alliance provided pro-bono design services for the project, which is being funded through NYC Parks’ Community Parks Initiative (CPI) as well as through the support of Council Member Stephen Levin.

Epiphany Playground is the Alliance’s second design for NYC Parks’ Community Parks Initiative, a multi-faceted investment in smaller public parks located in dense and growing neighborhoods with higher-than-average concentrations of poverty.
The Alliance’s design renovates the space by adding new play equipment for children of all ages, a gentle water feature, a multipurpose free-play area and sport courts, including a junior-sized basketball court with an additional hoop for shooting practice and one handball court.

In order to make the Park more open and inviting, the design removes high shrubs along the fence line and replaces them with small trees, lower shrubs and perennials and adds a new entrance at Berry and South Tenth Streets. Bench seating and café-style tables will be placed throughout the playground, as well as two bottle-filler drinking fountains and new trash receptacles.

Street trees will be added on all three sides of the site to provide shade and create a green, inviting border. Additionally, security lighting will be added to improve site visibility and enhance safety throughout the evening hours. In collaboration with the NYC Department of Environmental Preservation, green infrastructure will also be installed to help capture stormwater runoff.

The project is scheduled to begin construction in 2017.

c. Martin Seck

Restoring Woodlands

August 6, 2015

The Prospect Park Alliance has received nearly $500,000 in funding to restore the woodlands at Lookout Hill, one of the highest points in Prospect Park. The funding from the National Park Service is being administered by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation through a program dedicated to rehabilitating historic landmarks damaged by Superstorm Sandy in 2012. 

Lookout Hill lost approximately 500 trees and suffered severe damage to the wooded slopes of Lookout Hill. The project will involve removing fallen material and stumps, and planting 2,500 trees, 3,000 shrubs and 25,000 plants to restore the woodlands and stabilize the slope to buffer against future storms. 

This is the second year that the Alliance has received funding through this program. In 2014, the Alliance received more than $725,000 in funding to restore a heavily wooded hillside in the Northeast corner of Prospect Park. Superstorm Sandy destroyed 40 to 50 trees causing damage to several structures and destabilizing slopes. This project will restore the woods by clearing storm damage, removing invasive species, planting native trees and shrubs, and stabilizing the slopes.

East Side Story

August 5, 2015

The City recently unveiled its budget, which includes $3.7 million in funding from the City Council and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams to support the restoration of two major projects high on the Alliance’s list of priorities: the Park’s Flatbush Avenue perimeter and the Oriental Pavilion, as well as pathway improvements provided by Council Member Brad Lander through the participatory budgeting process this past spring.

Read a New York Times article that highlights these projects, as well as future plans for restoring other sections of the northeast corner of the Park. 

“It is thanks to our elected officials that we are able to accomplish important projects throughout the Park,” said Alliance President Sue Donoghue. “The Alliance relies on funding from private and public sources, which is critical for restoring and maintaining the Park. The community has voiced a strong desire to see these projects come to light and we are thankful to our outstanding elected officials who have provided this support.”

The Oriental Pavilion is a key element of the Park’s historic design, and has served for decades as a popular spot for family gatherings and picnics. After years of slow deterioration, the Pavilion was declared unsafe and closed to the public in 2014. Thanks to the generous funds totaling $2 million from Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Council Member Brad Lander and the Brooklyn Delegation, the structure and surrounding pathways will be restored. This includes replacing the water-damaged roof, installing more lighting and repairing stairways leading down from Breeze Hill.

A short walk north, Flatbush Avenue improvements will broaden the sidewalk bordering the Park and add street trees from Grand Army Plaza toward the Prospect Park Zoo.  The project is made possible through $1.5 million in funding secured by Council Member Laurie Cumbo and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, in addition to $900,000 secured by Cumbo and Adams in 2014. Fencing will be replaced and set farther back to broaden the sidewalk from 16 to 30 feet. An allée of trees will flank the sidewalk, providing shade for pedestrians and restoring this section of the avenue to its original grandeur.

$200,000 in funding for pathway improvements through Council Member Brad Lander and the participatory budgeting process will renovate the path that leads from the Park’s Children’s Corner (Lefferts Historic House, Prospect Park Carousel, Prospect Park Zoo) to the Zucker Natural Exploration Area, providing Park visitors with better access between these two beloved family destinations.

c. Paul Martinka

Allies of the Arch

May 13, 2015

Located at the northernmost end of the Long Meadow, Endale Arch was one of the first architectural features to be completed in Prospect Park nearly 150 years ago. After decades of decay, the Alliance recently received a grant from the Tiger Baron Foundation, as well as funding from Council Member Brad Lander through the participatory budgeting process, to restore this beautiful piece of history. The project brings together the full range of the Alliance’s in-house expertise to bring this vision to life, and is a true collaboration between its Landscape Management and Design and Construction teams, as well as its Volunteer program.

A key part of the Alliance’s mission is to beautify the landscape and restore the original vision of the Park’s designers, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux. The Design and Construction team includes landscape architects and other professionals who oversee improvements to the Park’s historic architecture, infrastructure and landscape design. The Landscape Management team is responsible for caring for the Park’s natural environment, including horticulturalists, arborists and a natural resources crew that monitors the health of the woodlands and surrounding areas. 

The restoration of Endale Arch, which is being completed in five phases, includes in its first phase removing decades of overgrowth, stabilizing boulder walls and planting new trees and shrubs. Landscape architects, horticulturalists, natural resources crew members, arborists and volunteers worked hand in hand for several months to clear the site of deeply rooted invasive plants. Once the area was cleared, the team worked to stabilize the slopes on either side of the arch and to repair the boulder walls. The new landscape design will feature both wooded and flowering plants, which will be planted in the coming weeks.

“The experience has been rewarding for all of those involved,” said John Jordan, the director of Landscape Management at the Alliance. “The diversity of expertise required for the project brought our teams together like never before. It was an important training opportunity for new staff, as well as a great way to meet colleagues. The horticulture team worked closely with the landscape architects. The work of the natural resources crew, which is typically behind the scenes, was placed prominently in the public eye, and the project could not have been completed without the technical support of the arborists.”

Check out Endale Arch in the coming weeks as the crews and volunteers take part in planting the new landscape.

Park Path Improvements

April 14, 2015

Council Member Brad Lander’s Participatory Budgeting process gives you the power to decide how $1.5 million will be spent on projects in your community.

In the past, this process helped fund pathway drainage improvements at the Long Meadow and Park Circle, as well as a few currently in design and construction at Endale Arch, the Lake and Litchfied Villa. This year, you can improve the pathway along the East Drive at Battle Pass, which spans from the Prospect Park Zoo to Zucker Natural Exploration Area. All you have to do is vote.

Tonight from 6:30–8:30 pm, attend the Project Expo, where delegates will present their projects at Camp Friendship, located on 8th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue. Voting will go through Sunday, April 19. Check out the full list of voting locations.  

You may also cast your ballot at Council Member Lander’s Park Slope office today through Thursday. To broaden Brooklyn’s voice, this year the voting age will be lowered to 14. You can even pledge to vote online.

Let it Rain

March 16, 2015

As regular cyclists, joggers and walkers in Prospect Park know, heavy storms can cause flooding along the Park Drive and pathways as runoff makes its way through the Park’s drainage system, which is nearly 150 years old. Stormwater management has become one of the biggest priorities for the Alliance’s Design and Construction team. Flooding not only hinders use of the Park, but also can have harmful consequences on the Park’s landscapes and ecosystems.

Nearly all new construction projects in Prospect Park, including the LeFrak Center at Lakeside  and the major renovation of the Long Meadow Ballfields, include sustainable stormwater systems. In addition, the Alliance’s Design and Construction team is exploring other ecologically minded improvements that can be implemented around the Park. New rain gardens that were recently installed along the Park Drive near Park Circle are examples of sustainable stormwater management. This project was made possible by residents of the 39th New York City Council District who voted in participatory budgeting in 2012, which was organized through the office of New York City Council Member Brad Lander.

Rain gardens are landscaped areas intended to collect stormwater runoff and allow it to slowly infiltrate the soil. A small trench is dug into the landscape and surrounded by native water-tolerant plants, such as New York Aster, Inkberry Holly, Bearberry and several native grasses. The gardens are not only beautiful additions to the Park, they also serve several important functions.

“In addition to absorbing stormwater so it doesn’t overwhelm the Park’s aging drainage system, rain gardens create an environmentally friendly method for filtering water and reducing erosion, which can have a devastating impact on the grass, shrubs and trees,” said Justine Heilner, the Alliance’s Senior Landscape Architect. “The rain gardens were planted this fall, and we already have seen a significant reduction in flooding. We are excited to see how they evolve this spring, and hope to install more throughout the Park.”

c. Michael Moran/OTTO

High Honors

January 13, 2015

To add to its growing list of achievements, the Samuel J. and Ethel Lefrak Center at Lakeside has just won the highest honor in architecture by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), a 2015 National Honor Award. The LeFrak Center was selected out of a field of nearly 500 candidates.  

“It is a true testament to the strengths of the LeFrak Center’s design that it is enjoyed by both the local community and the international architectural community alike,” said Alliance President Sue Donoghue. “Lakeside has set the bar in terms of what can be achieved in Prospect Park, and we look forward to continuing to further this vision.” 

Designed by renowned architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, in collaboration with the Alliance’s acclaimed chief landscape architect Christian Zimmerman, the LeFrak Center at Lakeside was designed to be an environmentally sensitive structure that fit seamlessly into the Park’s natural splendor and provide a year-round amenity for the community.

In selecting the LeFrak Center, the AIA Honor Award Jury said: “The stonework grounds it as a landmark within the park, while the openness of the design itself allows for complete amalgamation with the view and the experience of nature… Every design decision was made so as to ease use on patrons and also to minimize the impact on the park. This is a beautiful, natural spot for visitors to a enjoy sensory experience.”

Said Billie Tsien: “We feel so lucky to have had this chance to do truly public work. It is the most democratic and thus most important work we can ever do.”

Partnering for Parks: Stroud Playground

January 5, 2015

The Prospect Park Alliance will provide pro-bono design work for the renovation of Stroud Playground in neighboring Crown Heights. The project reflects the Alliance’s commitment to increasing the accessibility and quality of urban parks, and enhancing open space. It is part of the City’s newly launched Community Parks Initiative, which will invest $130 million to fully renovate 35 parks in areas with the greatest need.

“The redesign of Stroud Playground is really an extension of our mission,” said Alliance President and Park Administrator Sue Donoghue. “We have decades of experience designing and building innovative and award-winning playgrounds in Prospect Park—from Imagination and Harmony Playgrounds, to Vanderbilt Playground and the Zucker Natural Exploration Area. The chance to share our expertise, and improve recreational opportunities for neighboring communities is an important park of our work.”

To kick off the project, the Alliance Design and Construction team, led by the Alliance’s chief landscape architect Christian Zimmerman, participated in a community forum on December 8, where they sparked ideas for how the playground could be improved—from water features, new play equipment and athletic courts, to raised garden beds and nature play areas.

In addition to the investment of design resources, the Alliance will also help foster stewardship by helping the community build its capacity to program, care and advocate for Stroud Playground. The Community Parks Initiative is also receiving support from the City Council to increase funding for gardeners, maintenance workers, and critical operating support to sustain the capital investment in the 35 parks that are part of the program.

Endale Arch Restoration

November 20, 2014

Prospect Park Alliance has begun the restoration of Endale Arch, one of the first architectural elements constructed in Prospect Park in the late 1860s. Park creators Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux planned Endale Arch and its counterpart, Meadowport Arch, to function as crucial transitions between the busy city and the tranquility of the Long Meadow. Their design, as ever combining elegance with practicality, ensured that vehicles were kept out of the way of pedestrians. 

This five-year restoration will be completed over several phases. In the first phase, which will conclude in Spring 2015, the Alliance will restore the stone retaining walls and plantings on the south side of the Arch. Subsequent phases will replace the Arch’s interior wood paneling and benches; reset boulders to stabilize the surrounding hillsides; add native trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants; and improve drainage to reduce flooding.

The project is funded by a generous grant from the Tiger Baron Foundation and Councilmember Brad Lander’s participatory budget process, and represents the Alliance’s continued efforts to restore and care for Brooklyn’s greatest natural treasure. Learn more about current park improvements.

c. Paul Martinka

Park Improvements

October 22, 2014

The Prospect Park Alliance has recently received more than $1.6 million in funding from government agencies on the federal, state and city levels to improve the northeast corner of the Park, including repairing storm damage in the Vale of Cashmere, and also reconstruction of the fencing and sidewalk along Flatbush Avenue.

The Alliance received nearly $730,000 from the National Park Service and the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to repair storm damage in the Vale, a once lush garden oasis located along a dramatic 60-foot slope, which was originally a children’s play area. The Vale eventually surrendered its sweeping views of the surrounding landscape to maturing trees. Last year, the Alliance created the Donald and Barbara Zucker Natural Exploration Area, which used trees damaged by Hurricane Sandy to create a new play area for children, which this year was named Best of New York by New York magazine.

Hurricane Sandy destroyed 50 trees in the Vale, causing damage to adjacent structures and destabilization of the sloping landscape. This project will restore the woodlands, clean up storm damage, reset damaged boulders, and replant native trees and shrubs in order to stabilize the slope. In addition, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and New York City Council Member Laurie Cumbo recently awarded grants totaling $900,000 for the first phase of repairing the sidewalk and fencing along Flatbush Avenue. Together with the future opening of the Flatbush entrance to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, this project will go far in improving accessibility to this side of the Park.

Park improvements aren’t restricted to the northeast corner. A significant project is currently underway to restore the Long Meadow Ballfields, and to improve pedestrian pathways and drainage issues around the Park. This includes the reconstruction of the transverse path at the north end of the Long Meadow, which was made possible through funds from New York City Council Member Brad Lander through the Participatory Budget process. 

In addition, to improve drainage issues at the Park Circle entrance to the Park, the Alliance has installed rain gardens that help to absorbe stormwater runoff. Like the rain gardens at the LeFrak Center, the new installations will recycle the water to feed surrounding plants and trees. Other projects currently underway are the creation of the first compostable restrooms in a city park at the historic Wellhouse, and the City Council has recently awarded funding toward the renovation of the Prospect Park Bandshell. Stay tuned for further news on these Park improvements.