November 20, 2019

Reconstruction Includes Green Infrastructure that will Absorb Stormwater and Improve the Health of the Hudson River

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) on Monday joined NYC Parks Commissioner Mitchell J. Silver, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Council Member Mark Levine, P.S. 145 Principal Dr. Natalia Russo and West Prep Academy Principal Carland Washington to announce the opening of the reconstructed Bloomingdale Playground. The $5.6 million playground reconstruction project was funded with $4.8 million from Mayor Bill de Blasio, which includes $340,000 from DEP for green infrastructure that will help to reduce flooding and improve the health of the Hudson River.

To manage stormwater runoff, green infrastructure elements, including a subsurface detention system, were added to Bloomingdale Playground in order to capture approximately 1.1 million gallons of stormwater each year. DEP has committed approximately $50 million in funding for green infrastructure installations at Community Parks Initiative sites across the five boroughs, helping to reduce sewer overflows that sometimes occur during heavy rainfall, improve air quality, and lower summertime temperatures.

“DEP and NYC Parks have once again partnered to beautifully reimagine a playground for the upper West Side community. The newly revamped Bloomingdale Playground utilizes an innovative green infrastructure system that will manage more than a million gallons of stormwater every year to improve the health of the nearby Hudson River,” said DEP Commissioner Vincent Sapienza.

“As our 45^th completed Community Parks Initiative project, Bloomingdale Playground marks significant progress in our work to create a more equitable park system,” said Commissioner Silver. “Like all of our Community Parks Initiative sites, the renovated playground is a reflection of the creative visions and ideas of the community it serves. By completely reconstructing the playground and comfort station to make them accessible and inclusive, updating the basketball courts, and adding new features and green infrastructure, we have transformed Bloomingdale Playground into an asset for the surrounding neighborhood.”

“I’m proud to have contributed funding to this renovation of Bloomingdale Playground,” said Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer. “It’s said that parks are New York City’s ‘lungs’ and keeping them clean must be a priority for city government.”

“From the beginning, Bloomingdale Playground has been the inspiration of Upper West Side parents and Community Board 7 members who all have had a powerful vision of an inclusive park where children of all ability levels can play together effortlessly,” said District 7 City Council Member Mark Levine. “The new Bloomingdale Park is the gold standard of their inclusive vision and marks a revolution in the way this City conceptualizes children play-spaces. This beautiful new playground is not just ADA accessible but also goes much further than that in its design to encourage play between children of all types of mental and physical levels. I could not be more proud of the work the community has put into this project and that I was able to contribute to its completion.”

Bloomingdale Playground—part of the Community Parks Initiative, NYC Parks’ commitment to addressing equity across the five boroughs—was completely redesigned to accommodate children of all ages and abilities. The playground now features new children’s play areas with swings, safety surfacing, and equipment that meets or exceeds all playground safety and ADA accessibility requirements. The project also added a new synthetic turf field that can be used for general play and as a gathering and performance space; an upgraded ADA compliant comfort station; new basketball courts; adult fitness equipment; new benches and other site furnishings; and a reconstructed spray shower. Additionally, DEP partnered with NYC Parks to provide support for green infrastructure improvements.

Additional funding includes $600,000 from Council Member Mark Levine and $180,000 from Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer. The $1.5 million comfort station reconstruction project was funded with $1.4 million from Mayor Bill de Blasio and $42,000 from Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer.

Launched by Mayor de Blasio in October 2014, the Community Parks Initiative (CPI) strives to build a more equitable parks system by investing in under resourced parks that are located in densely populated and growing neighborhoods with higher-than-average concentrations of poverty. Through CPI, the City is investing $318 million in capital dollars funding renovations of 67 parks that have not undergone improvements in decades.

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing approximately 1 billion gallons of high-quality drinking water each day to more than 9.6 million residents, including 8.6 million in New York City. The water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the city, comprising 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,500 miles of sewer lines and 96 pump stations take wastewater to 14 in-city treatment plants. DEP has nearly 6,000 employees, including almost 1,000 in the upstate watershed. In addition, DEP has a robust capital program, with a planned $20.1 billion in investments over the next 10 years that will create up to 3,000 construction-related jobs per year. For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.