NYC announces new open spaces, playgrounds at 6 developments

$5.1 million invested in Kingsborough Houses in Crown Heights through playground revitalization

September 15, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

The Kingsborough Houses in Crown Heights. Image via Google Maps

Kingsborough Houses in Crown Heights. Photo courtesy of Google Maps®

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Mayor Eric Adams, along with the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation and NYCHA have announced the creation of a pilot program – the Walk to a Park initiative – on Wednesday to transform and invest in three acres of open space at six NYCHA developments, including playgrounds in Queens, The Bronx and Brooklyn.

The expansion includes the revitalization of two playgrounds at Kingsborough Houses with $5.1 million in investment. Amenities such as new play equipment, game tables, benches and landscaping are planned for the Crown Heights complex in the initial pilot of Walk to a Park.

Announcement of the program was held at Pomonok Houses in Queens, which has been fully reconstructed with access to fitness equipment, sensory play equipment, seating and new landscaping.

Redfern Houses ($9.3 million)

Size: 50,000 square feet of NYCHA recreation area and Redfern Playground
Scope: This project will reconstruct Redfern Playground and the adjacent NYCHA open space to include an upgraded ball field, basketball court, and handball court, play equipment, fitness equipment for teens and adults, and a grilling area.

Woodside Houses ($1.2 million)

Size: 6,500 square feet
Scope: This project will revamp a passive seating and landscaped area at Woodside Houses with new game tables, benches, landscaping, and pathways.

Pomonok Houses ($3 million)

Size: 13,000 square feet
Scope: This project has re-imagined an open space at Pomonok Houses to include fitness equipment, sensory play equipment, seating, and new landscaping.

Watson Houses ($2.5 million)

Size: 9,300 square feet
Scope: This project will revamp a playground and seating area at 1471 Watson Houses to include new play equipment, game tables, benches, water play, landscaping, and brand new adult fitness equipment.

Kingsborough Houses ($5.1 million)

Size:20,000 and 16,000 square feet
Scope: This project will revitalize two playgrounds at Kingsborough Houses with new play equipment, game tables, benches, water play, and landscaping.

Sotomayor Houses ($1.9 million)

Size: 9,900 square feet
Scope: This project will revamp a playground at Sotomayor Houses with new play equipment, water play, game tables, benches, landscaping, and brand-new swings.

“Open spaces are vital to the health of any city,” said Councilmember Alexa Avilés (D-Brooklyn).

“For too long, our public housing agency has been siloed and left to deal with its issues and decades of disinvestment on its own. For NYCHA to succeed we need city agencies to work collaboratively and deliver for public housing residents. I applaud NYC Parks, NYCHA and the mayor’s office for spearheading this interagency pilot that will deliver dignified playgrounds for all to enjoy.”

“Communities grow around the spaces we build. When we revitalize our playgrounds and open spaces, like the mayor, Parks, and NYCHA are doing in Kingsborough Houses, we create neighborhoods that nourish the families who live there. This open space initiative is exactly the people-centered project that will benefit Brooklyn and our entire city for generations,” said Borough President Antonio Reynoso.