BY BEN VERDE
After a year of heavy use
stemming from the coronavirus
pandemic, Prospect Park
is launching a new program to
keep Brooklyn’s Backyard in
ship-shape ahead of the summer
season.
The initiative, dubbed
Re:New Prospect Park, aims to
keep the greenspace clean and
well maintained, with a focus
on trash management, park improvements,
and volunteerism.
“Starting from last March
the park has been absolutely
so well used, and it’s been such
a respite for so many people,”
said Sue Donoghue of the Prospect
Park Alliance, the nonprofi
t steward of the park. “But
all that love takes its toll and we
really felt it was important as
we think about this spring and
this summer that we are prepared
and putting the resources
necessary to really help to care
COURIER L 12 IFE, MAY 21-27, 2021
for and maintain the park —
because we know we’re going
to be facing a good deal of usage
again this summer.”
A combination of heavy use
and budget cuts put the park in
a tough spot last summer — one
it hopes not to be in again, according
to Donoghue.
“Last summer we really
struggled to have the resources
to adequately maintain the
park because of signifi cant cuts
to the Park’s Department budget,
and then by necessity, we at
the Alliance also had to cut our
budget,” she said. “The impacts
of those decrease in resources
were signifi cant and immediately
noticeable in overfl owing
trash cans.”
The initiative will see the
park partner with job training
group Ace New York and receive
funding from e-commerce
giant Amazon.
To curb trash pile up the
park faced last year during a
summer of large crowds, Ace
New York crews will provide
rubbage pickup services on
peak weekdays and weekend
evenings through October, and
an Amazon representative said
the tech company was particularly
interested in helping pay
for improvements to the east
side of the park.
“Amazon heard that the Alliance
is particularly focused
on improvements to Prospect
Park’s East side, adjacent to
the neighborhoods of Crown
Heights and Prospect Lefferts
Gardens,” said Carley Graham
Garcia, Amazon’s New York
City head of external affairs.
“We were excited that our support
helped this underserved
section of the park, while creating
local employment opportunities.”
Another of the initiative’s
tenets involves improvements
Prospect Park Prospect Park Alliance
to park infrastructure and
greenery. Broadly, spruce-ups
are planned for lawn areas,
restrooms, and barbecues,
while specifi c renovations are
planned for the Lincoln Road
and Children’s Corner bathrooms,
new benches and landscaping
are planned for the
Drummer’s Grove, and new
grills and furnishings are
planned for the Picnic House
and Bandshell barbecue areas.
A third pillar of the initiative
will be an emphasis on volunteer
efforts, according to the
Alliance, with an expansion of
volunteer opportunities including
a “Green and Go” kit for
anytime cleanups and the return
of the “It’s My Park Monday”
program.
“It’s so important to support
your local park and be out helping
to maintain it,” said Donoghue.
“It’s been such a vital part
of people’s experience during
this pandemic.”
Cleanup time!
Prospect Park rolls out new upkeep initiative
ahead of the summer season’s heavy use