The $17.8 million Maspeth Park, funded by taxpayers, has been a virtual ghost town since it opened under the Kosciuszko Bridge last year. The park is located in an isolated industrial and manufacturing zone at 54th Road and 43rd Street, over a mile from the nearest subway station, and lacks proper signage and lighting for passers-by to find it. Local residents say they are unaware of its existence. One resident reported that she is forced to drive to the park and park on the sidewalk since there is no public parking available during the week. The park’s location makes it difficult for children to walk to it due to the highway cuts in the area.
Though Governor Kathy Hochul claimed in a press release that the new park is “located within walking distance from surrounding residential neighborhoods, including Sunnyside and West Maspeth,” local residents argue that strolling through an industrial zone first “is quite an adventure from any direction.” Thomas Mituzas, secretary of the nearby Blissville Civic Association in Long Island City, acknowledged that more advertising is needed and suggested improving the 43rd Street underpass with better lighting and access.
The park lacks much green space but does come with basketball courts, exercise equipment, game tables, and professional sports lighting for after-dark recreation. While some locals lamented that they’ve waited decades for a park – only to have it be mainly concrete – Mituzas said the site is still a great addition to the neighborhood. Blissville is “one of the safest neighborhoods” for children to walk through, and the park draws up to 20 or 30 people on a good weekend. One of its more popular attractions is its concrete skateboarding park – which draws a crowd of a whopping half-dozen skaters on weeknights.
Meanwhile, just over a mile from Maspeth Park is the L/CPL Thomas P. Noonan Jr. Playground in Sunnyside, which opened a $2.5 million dog run to fanfare last month. However, that park has faced its own accessibility issues for years. The biggest concern surrounds a group of homeless men who live on the grounds and shower in the kids’ splash pad and trash the bathrooms and pass out – naked and high – in the toddler playground. Maria, 43, said a gang of homeless men moved into the children’s playground after the dog park where they used to sleep was renovated. A park employee told The Post that the half-dozen men have been “using the bathroom all around the park,” and their messy business has prompted park workers to close the women’s bathroom.
