April Parks Committee Report for Manhattan CB3
East River Park is building new restrooms! Plus, continued efforts to support Sara D. Roosevelt Park and local tree guards
Author’s note #1: Tal and I serve on the Parks Committee of Manhattan Community Board 3 (CB3) together. I write the newsletter Friends of New York City Abundance. The views expressed here are my own and do not necessarily represent those of Manhattan CB3.
Author’s note #2: Recently, the BRC Senior Services Center received a camera upgrade, so Parks Committee Meetings are now hybrid—you can join via Zoom! Here’s a YouTube upload of this meeting:
Parks Manager Updates
Eddie, the Parks Manager, provided updates on:
Upcoming Events: “It’s My Park” volunteer events at Corlears Hook (May 8) and Tompkins Square Park (May 9).
Park Safety & Maintenance: Discussions on ongoing collaborations with the 5th Precinct to address drug use and syringe removal in Sara D. Roosevelt (SDR) Park.
Parks works with the Department of Sanitation to clean up syringes. For example, they found 114 last week.
A new syringe disposal unit will be added near Hester Street.
Illegal Dumping: Parks has successfully enforced penalties for trash dumping at Captain Jacob Joseph Playground. (This topic was previously discussed at the January and March committee meetings)
Water Access: Confirmation that water fountain turn-ons are underway following a harsh winter.
Questions for the Parks Manager
Q: Recently at SDR Park, an elderly lady was nearly raped. The suspect was arrested that day, but what is being done to prevent this from happening again?
A: NYPD has now established a patrol in the park, which includes a night patrol from 6:00 PM to midnight.
Q: There have been reports of someone camping out at East River Park. Has Parks responded yet?
A: We haven’t received any reports about this. 311 should respond within a couple of hours if you file a report.
Q: Are there any updates on replacing the Hester Street Playground sandbox? We wrote a resolution about it [in March 2025] and discussed a nature-based replacement. Last I heard [NY Parks Manhattan Chief of Staff] Steve Simon was requesting further information.
A: I’ll follow up. There have been conversations about adding more sand to the sandbox.
A: (Community Board District Manager) The applicants for the sandbox replacement walked away from the project. The reasons for this remain unclear.
Q: Closing down the Men’s Shelter on East 30th will put more pressure on SDR Park. Are we ready for that?
Q: At Columbus Park, someone is setting the pavilion on fire. It has happened twice in the last six months. Is someone looking into this?
Lower East Side Ecology Center (LESEC) Spring Programming
Maddie discussed spring programming, including:
LESEC is running its Coolest Block in the Lower East Side contest again this year. Last year had 13 participants.
Last year’s contest winners have had their tree guards installed via a partnership with NYC Parks Tree Time.
When caring for street trees, you can borrow tools from the Tool Lending Library. The library stocks gloves, visibility vests, and other supplies.
To use the service, first become a member online. You can then pick up tools at the Tompkins Square Park Greenmarket on Sundays between 9AM and 4PM.
Department of Design and Construction (DDC): Construction of Restroom in East River Park
The project is a design-build contract for a 760 square feet restroom facility at East River Park, parallel to Grand Street nearby East River Park Field (the ballpark).
Construction is expected to start soon, with completion slated for the fall.
Questions for the DDC about the restrooms
Q: What is Design-Build?
A: It is a kind of contract where the same firm does the design and building. In other contracts, different firms may each complete each phase separately.
Q: This construction won’t affect already-awarded ballpark permits, right?
A: Correct.
Q: Will this impact access to the pedestrian bridges into East River Park?
A: No, it will not affect pedestrian bridge access.
Q: Is there utility work involved in this project?
A: Yes, there will be underground utility work. We have already coordinated with ConEdison on this.
Q: Is ConEdison feeling good about the schedule? The seem to still be busy recovering from the winter.
A: Yes, it’s fine, we coordinated with them via the East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) project.
Q: Will you put air monitors where construction is occurring? That is one of the busiest parts of the park.
A: There will be a construction fence to prevent debris from affecting visitors. Because this project only involves digging up a grass lawn (clean fill that has already been raised) to a depth of 4 feet, air monitoring is not required. Containment is generally only used for lead paint or asbestos. However, we are working with the ESCR team and can coordinate to water down the area if we see dust.
Q: What if the public sees any issues with the construction?
A: There will not be a dedicated Community Construction Liaison (CCL) for this specific site as there is for ESCR. However, the ESCR online inquiry tool can be used as a resource.
Q: Why weren’t these restrooms completed during the main ESCR construction in the area?
A: This was a separate contract. The design and permitting for the restrooms occurred well after the start of ESCR construction. While there are currently bathrooms in the Fireboat House, they won’t be available as a long-term solution.
Q: Under an agreement with the community, DDC pledged to keep at least 42% of the park open at all times. Does this construction violate that pledge?
A: We can relay that question to the ESCR team
Q: How are you protecting the nearby trees?
A: We are surrounding those trees with 4x4 wooden cages for protection.
NY Parks responses to CB budget requests
The Community Board (CB) makes budget requests to the city government, which are approved in October. In January, the City creates a preliminary budget, and the City Council hosts executive budget hearings in May.
The CB now has responses to last year’s budget requests.
Most responses from the Parks Department state that they lack the funding for specific requests, as they do not have their own capital funding. Typically, these projects must be funded by the City or specific elected officials.
Great stuff! Besides volunteering, it anyone wants to give to Friends of Tompkins Square Park, which hosts the volunteer events for gardening and trash pick up, that can be done at this link:
https://www.friendsoftompkinssquarepark.org/home#donate