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6 times • JUNE 23, 2016 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com Empty lot transformed into playground at Ridgewood school BY ANTHONY GIUDICE agiudice@ridgewoodtimes.com @A_GiudiceReport The once-barren asphalt lot at P.S. 75 in Ridgewood has been transformed into a state-of-theart playground complete with a unique green infrastructure. The School Construction Authority (SCA) joined with the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) — partnering with the Department of Education (DOE) — to bring this new schoolyard to life for the 500 pre-K to 12th grade students who will be using the park. The 1-acre playground includes several green infrastructure elements, including specialized plantings and shade trees, porous pavement and permeable pavers, and a new synthetic turf field made of woven polyester filaments and featuring a broken stone storage layer and perforated distribution pipes to promote infiltration. These features will help capture more than 375,000 gallons of stormwater runoff each year. Another unique aspect of this playground is that it was funded by an innovative public-private partnership, with a private donation from funders to The Trust for Public Land NYC Playgrounds program, and public funding from Councilman Antonio Reynoso and the DOE, DEP and SCA. The total cost of the playground is a little over $1 million, including $795,000 for construction and $333,000 for design, community engagement and environmental education. “This new playground will provide students at P.S. 75 and the broader community with a new outdoor space to learn and play,” said Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña. “We’re grateful to the Trust for Public Land and the Department of Environmental Protection for their partnership on this project, and look forward to continuing to work together to create more green spaces for students across the cities.” In order to create the design for the playground, The Trust for Public Land NYC Playgrounds went to the people who would be using the space the most: the children. Students from P.S. 75 spent three months helping to plan the new playground, which features a large piece of play equipment, a turf field, a running track, an outdoor classroom, color seal art designed by the students, a stage, a garden, trees, a drinking fountain and seating. “I am so pleased that I was able to help support the construction of this new playground for the children of P.S. 75Q and the Ridgewood community,” Reynoso said. “It’s so unique not only because it provides a much-needed playground for the students and addresses the lack of green infrastructure in our community at the same time, but also because the students were able to have a direct role in the design.” The playground will also operate as a public open space during weekends, holidays and school vacations. Photos courtesy of The Trust for Public Land and New York City The empty lot at P.S. 75 in Ridgewood has been transformed into a beautiful playground for the students and community. Major renovation completed at Highland Park fields By Candace Higins editorial@ridgewoodtimes.com @RidgewoodTimes Baseball and softball lovers on both sides of the Brooklyn/Queens border now have two newly renovated fields to enjoy. Councilman Rafael Espinal Jr. and Assemblyman Erik Martin Dilan will join Parks Department officials and area Little League ballplayers at a ribbon-cutting ceremony tomorrow morning in Highland Park for the revamped diamonds in the area of Jamaica Avenue and Elton Street. As part of the NYC Parks’ beautification process, the Highland Park ballfields — which straddle the Brooklyn/ Queens border near Glendale, Woodhaven and Cypress Hills — were made over with $3.4 million in funding from the City Council and an additional $700,000 from the Mayor’s Office. The new fields offer a modernized look to the historical park. Both fields feature clay mounds, dugouts with benches, and drinking fountains. Previous issues with drainage and erosion in the park have also been fixed. One of the fields has 90-foot-long baselines for adult play while the other has 60-foot baselines for adolescent games. Highland Park has been around since the early 1900s. It is located at one of the highest points of Long Island and offers a remarkable view of The Rockaways and the Atlantic Ocean. It’s also adjacent to the Ridgewood Reservoir, a former backup water supply that evolved into a natural wetland featuring more than 151 species of birds found in the spacious landscapes of woods and wetlands. The ribbon-cutting ceremony gets underway at 11 a.m. on June 21.


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