FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MAY 20, 2021 • THE QUEENS COURIER 11
Rockaway playground opens after $8M makeover
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Elected officials and Arverne
community leaders cut the ribbon
Photo courtesy of NYC Parks/Daniel Avila
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards (c.) helps cut the ribbon on an $8.1 million reconstruction of an Arverne
playground.
on an $8.1 million total
reconstruction of Almeda
Playground at Beach 66th
Street on Tuesday, May 12.
As part of the Community
Parks Initiative, the public
space has been completely
renovated with upgraded features
and amenities funded by
Mayor Bill de Blasio.
The playground now features
a more inclusive play area,
an outdoor classroom, spray
showers, an adult fitness area,
basketball and handball courts,
shaded seating areas and more.
As requested by the community,
the project also enhanced
the playground’s greenery with
a robust planting palette.
“Almeda Playground is a
treasured community resource
in Arverne, so I’m pleased
that this extensive and muchneeded
reconstruction of the
playground has been completed,”
said Queens Borough
President Donovan Richards,
who grew up in the nearby
Ocean Village apartments.
“All children deserve access to
first-class play space, and the
Community Parks Initiative
has succeeded in creating
such a space here at Almeda
Playground and at so many
other parks throughout the
borough and the city. I thank
Mayor de Blasio and NYC
Parks, led by Commissioner
Silver, for putting high-quality
open space where they can
safely play, gather and enjoy
the outdoors.”
Elected officials pointed to
the importance of the renovation,
especially after children
and seniors have spent more
than a year pent up indoors.
“The coronavirus pandemic
has underscored the
need for access to fresh air
and recreational resources,”
Councilwoman Selvena
Brooks-Powers said. “As a
mom myself, I understand
firsthand how important it is
for us to have a safe space for
our children to exert energy,
make new friends, all within
the immediate community.
The renovation of Almeda
Playground will offer families
a park system for all.”
NYC Parks Commissioner
Mitchell Silver helped cut the
ribbon at Almeda Playground
as he nears the end of his seven
year tenure later in the
spring. Under his watch, the
agency has invested more
than $419 million in the borough’s
parks and green spaces.
Of the more than 800 capital
projects completed under
Silver’s administration, 209 are
in Queens.
“Since its launch, the
Community Parks Initiative
has taken transformative steps
towards creating a more accessible
parks system for all New
Yorkers,” Silver said. “As commissioner,
I’ve prioritized working
to ensure that all New
Yorkers have access to quality
parks, and it’s outstanding to see
these underused spaces transformed
into community assets.”
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