Tag: Prospect Park Alliance

c. Joseph O. Holmes

Winter Guide to Prospect Park

January 11, 2018

Temperatures have dropped and snow is in the air—time to head to Prospect Park! We’ve collected everything you could possible need to enjoy a frosty trip to the Park, whether you’re a skater, sledder, hiker or historian. Image c. Joseph O. Holmes.

Winter Activities

Winter at Prospect Park Alliance

Winter Through the Ages

Terry Christensen and Leslie Beller at the Prospect Park Alliance’s 1998 Woodlands Ball

In Memoriam: Prospect Park Alliance Advocates Terry Christensen and Leslie Beller

November 10, 2017

This month, Prospect Park Alliance mourns the passing of two individuals, Founding Board Chair Terry Christensen and longtime Board Member Leslie Beller. These dedicated members of our community leave a lasting legacy on Prospect Park. 

Henry “Terry” Christensen III
The Founding Board Chair of Prospect Park Alliance, Terry Christensen passed away on November 3, 2017. He founded the Alliance with Tupper Thomas in 1987 and served as Chair of the Board of Directors for 20 years, until he stepped down in 2007. He first became a supporter of Prospect Park in 1983 when he gave $100 to the Alliance’s precursor—Prospect Park Tree Trust—and instantly became the Park’s largest individual donor. 

Christensen lived across the street from the Park, and enjoyed its acres with his four children. “I love everything about Prospect Park,” Christensen reminisced in a 2015 interview. “I have so many memories in the Park, picnics in the Park with our children, walking around the watercourse… It’s a place of unending beauty. That’s why it’s so important, it’s the backyard for all the people of Brooklyn.”

Tupper Thomas, as Prospect Park’s first Administrator, reached out to Christensen to ask for his help in the Park, and in 1987 they launched the Alliance with the blessing of Mayor Ed Koch. They called their new organization an “Alliance” rather than a “Conservancy,” because in their view they were not “conserving” the Park, but rather bringing together the public and private sectors in innovative new ways. The model that they created has been widely admired and adopted throughout the country.

During Terry’s tenure the Alliance grew its annual operating budget from $40,000 to $10 million—the Alliance now provides a majority of the staff and resources to care for the Park. Overseeing the restoration of the Park’s 1912 carousel was his first project as Board Chair, and restoring Brooklyn’s last remaining forest was his last. While everybody loves the Carousel, which was dedicated to him in 2007, the forest and the park’s landscape were his real passion.

As Al Garner, who succeeded him as Board Chair, has said, “Terry set the bar for truly effective leadership” while making it look easy and brought a rare combination of vision and practicality to the task. Quite simply, the Alliance would not exist without Terry’s leadership, for that we—and millions of Brooklynites—will forever be grateful. His legacy lives on through our beloved Park, which he called his “fifth child.” 

An attorney with Sullivan & Cromwell and then McDermott Will & Emery, Terry led an extensive international practice advising multinational families, family offices and trustees. In addition to his service to the Alliance, Terry was actively involved in community and cultural life. He served as a member of the BAM board for 25 years and provided steady guidance to many other organizations’ boards including Theater for a New Audience, The Rita + Alex Hillman Foundation, the American Council for Oriental Research and many others. 

Christensen passed away at the age of 72. He is survived by his wife Constance—they celebrated their 50th anniversary this summer—as well as his children Alexander (Susan), Gus (Courtney Booth), Elizabeth and Katherine, four grandchildren and a sister, Karen Cheeseman.

Read more about his life in The New York Times.

Leslie Beller
A longtime Board Member of Prospect Park Alliance, Leslie Beller passed away on October 30, 2017. For more than 27 years, Beller served on the Prospect Park Alliance Board of Directors, including as Secretary, co-chair of the Development Committee, and a member of the Operations and Design + Construction Committees. She was deeply committed to making Prospect Park a safe and vibrant destination and was an avid park-goer herself, spending many weekends on the Long Meadow and the Parade Ground as her children grew up playing on the sports fields.

Her boundless enthusiasm touched so many corners of the Park and the lives of so many Brooklyn families. Beller championed the restoration of some of the Park’s most iconic features, including the woodland Ravine and historic Boathouse, while campaigning for dramatic improvements, such as the celebrated Samuel J. and Ethel LeFrak Center at Lakeside. The LeFrak Center was a particularly significant milestone for her. As she herself said, back in the early 1980s when she was teaching her daughter to skate at the former Wollman Rink, she could only dream of an organization that could think that big and create something as beautiful as Lakeside.
 
A magnetic personality and fearless fundraiser, Beller helped grow the Alliance from a small grassroots organization into a professional and renowned leader in the field, while never losing sight of the importance of engaging the community and all of the neighborhoods surrounding the Park. She constantly inspired new friends and neighbors to become involved with the Alliance. Leslie was a true force of nature—loyal, passionate and generous—and a great friend. The Alliance was able to celebrate her legacy, along with former Board Chair Al Garner’s, at its 2015 Gala.

Leslie also served as a board member of The Brooklyn Museum from 2002 until her death, as well as of the Park Slope Civic Council. Leslie died peacefully at home surrounded by her husband Alan, her daughter Elizabeth and son David, their spouses Michael and Brigid and her granddaughter Clementine. 

Read more about her life in The New York Times.

Emerald Ash Borer Discovered in Prospect Park

October 27, 2017

Today, the New York State Departments of Agriculture and Markets (DAM) and Environmental Conservation (DEC) confirmed the first-ever discovery of Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) in New York City in Prospect Park.  Of an initial survey of 10 suspected trees in Prospect Park by Prospect Park Alliance—the non-profit that cares for the Park in partnership with the City, three were confirmed to be infested by this invasive pest by a Cornell University researcher. 

Prospect Park Alliance has removed three trees to date that succumbed to this infestation, located along the Ocean Avenue perimeter of the Park, and additional affected trees in this area will be removed over the winter. NYC Parks, DEC, DAM and Prospect Park Alliance are taking immediate action to limit the spread of infestation and protect New York City’s more than 51,000 ash trees.

“The Emerald Ash Borer infestation was detected in Prospect Park thanks to vigilant monitoring of the tree population by Prospect Park Alliance arborists, a year-round tree crew committed to the protection and preservation of the Park’s 30,000 trees,” said John Jordan, Director of Landscape Management for Prospect Park Alliance. “The Alliance will continue to monitor ash trees in the Park, and will work closely with New York City Parks Department, USDA and DEC to continue tracking and responding to this infestation.”

EAB is a non-native species of beetle whose larvae kill trees by burrowing into the inner bark and thus interrupting the circulation of water and vital nutrients. EAB-infested trees are characterized by thin crowns, sprouts on the trunks of the trees, and the signature d-shaped exit holes adult beetles leave on trees’ bark. EAB only affects ash trees, which constitute roughly three percent of NYC’s street trees. EAB has been present in New York State since 2009.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo recently awarded a $75,000 Urban Forestry Grant to the Prospect Park Alliance to conduct a tree inventory of Prospect Park. The inventory will include an estimated 12,000 to 15,000 trees in the landscaped areas of the park, representing about half of the total population. The tree inventory will include an invasive insect, pest, and disease detection survey by incorporating the USDA Forest Service early pest detection protocol (IPED).

Help support Prospect Park Alliance’s work to sustain the Park’s 30,000 trees by donating a commemorative tree; becoming a member or making a donation to the Alliance.
 
Additional information about EAB is available on the DEC website.

Victor J. Blue for the New York Times

The New York Times Highlights Alliance’s Woodland Restoration Efforts

October 6, 2017

The New York Times gave a fond farewell to Eyebrows, Lily Belle and Swiss Cheese, and the important work these Green Goats performed to help Prospect Park Alliance restore two woodland areas that were hard hit by Hurricane Sandy and other severe storms. This month, the Alliance Natural Resources Crew and volunteers are planting over 20,000 trees, plants and shrubs throughout the Vale of Cashmere, one of the two restoration sites. These native species will help build a healthy forest habitat for birds, wildlife and humans alike. 

Read The New York Times article, and learn more about the Alliance’s work to restore the woodlands.

Alliance and NYC Parks Break Ground on Stroud Playground

September 14, 2017

The Stroud Playground groundbreaking ceremony. Pictured left to right: State Assembly Member Walter Mosley, Prospect Park Alliance President Sue Donoghue, NYC Parks Commissioner Mitchell J. Silver, Brooklyn Borough Parks Commissioner Marty Maher, City Council Member Laurie Cumbo, Deputy Brooklyn Borough President Diana Reyna, Principle of PS316 Olga Maluf and Principal of MS353 Tricia Delauney.

On September 8, a groundbreaking ceremony in Crown Heights kicked off the $5 million redesign of Stroud Playground, which was undertaken pro-bono by Prospect Park Alliance as part of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Community Parks Initiative. The new design fits many amenities into a compact, one-acre space for the benefit of the community and the two schools it serves.

“The Alliance brought decades of expertise in designing award-winning playgrounds in Prospect Park to this project, and we were pleased to be able to contribute to the Community Parks Initiative,” said Alliance President Sue Donoghue. “We are thrilled to have worked on this new design for Stroud Playground that will strengthen and revitalize this cherished community space.”

The Community Parks Initiative is a citywide plan orchestrated by NYC Parks to renovate parks in communities with the greatest need through capital funding, programming and strategic partnerships. The project also received funding from Council Member Laurie Cumbo.

“It was a truly special experience working with the Prospect Park Alliance, Council Member Cumbo, and of course, the many passionate community members who came to our public input meeting to be a part of the design process,” Commissioner Silver said in a statement. “As a result, Stroud Playground will be transformed into a place that can be enjoyed by people of all ages.”

Through a community engagement process, Crown Heights residents weighed in on what they hoped to see in the redesigned park. The innovative design by Prospect Park Alliance includes new play equipment for children of all ages and abilities, and an interactive spray shower. The basketball and handball courts are being expanded and a new synthetic turf area will accommodate open play. There will also be a new track and adult fitness equipment.

The landscape will be enhanced with a number of additional trees to help provide shade for the new seating area and benches, and beautify the space. A garden will serve as a quiet area for relaxation and serve as an outdoor classroom for PS 316 and MS 383 students. Security lighting and lower fencing will make the space safer and more inviting.

Stroud marks the Alliance’s first major design project outside Prospect Park. Construction is expected to take 18 months to complete. The Alliance is currently working on the redesign of Epiphany Playground in Williamsburg, also as part of the Community Parks Initiative.

Learn more about Prospect Park Alliance’s architecture and design team.

Lucy Gardner

New Goat Crew Arrives on Lookout Hill

August 15, 2017

As you may have “herd,” the Prospect Park Alliance Natural Resources Crew received some new additions this July. Four new goats, Lily Belle, Eyebrows, Horatio and Swiss Cheese, have arrived on Lookout Hill, a patch of woodlands and one of the highest points in the Park, located behind the newly restored Wellhouse. Like previous goats that have resided in Prospect Park, these four are tasked with clearing vegetation from wooded areas plagued by invasive species in order to make room for native species that will be planted by Alliance staff next fall. These goat, however, are also part of a new research project with the U.S. Forest Service (USFS).

Although the goats are just arriving on the scene, Prospect Park Alliance’s Landscape Management team has been hard at work in this location for nearly a year. Lookout Hill was selected for restoration because of the severe damage storms such as Hurricane Sandy have inflicted on the area, similar to the Vale of Cashmere. The restoration work in both areas is made possible through $1.2 million in funding from the Hurricane Sandy Disaster Relief Assistance Grant Program for Historic Properties, administered by New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Eighty trees on Lookout Hill were either damaged or destroyed during Hurricane Sandy, leaving room for sun-loving invasive species to take over, damaging the ecosystem. According to Mary Keehbauch, the Alliance’s Natural Resources Crew foreperson, the ultimate goal is to “diversify native plant species in a sustainable way.” This means removing the invasives and replacing them with native species without using chemicals or other methods of removal that might harm the local environment.   

In October 2016, a team of Alliance staff partnered with the USFS to perform an initial assessment of the health of the Lookout Hill woodlands. The team was trained by Dr. Rich Hallett, a USFS research scientist, in the protocol for mapping, monitoring and recording the health of forested areas. Throughout the Lookout Hill restoration, the Prospect Park Alliance Natural Resources Crew will continue to monitor the health of the area, and the data collected will be part of a larger effort by the USFS to survey and protect urban forests. During their time in the Park, Lily Belle, Eyebrows, Horatio and Swiss Cheese will be rotated throughout five plots within the area. The health of these “goat” plots will be compared to “goat-less: plots, where Alliance staff will be clearing manually.

The results of this study will help determine the effect that goats have on urban woodlands restoration, and help the Alliance in the future care of the Park’s 250 acres of woodlands. Over the past three decades, the Alliance has invested more than $15 million to restore and revitalize the Park’s woodlands, which were previously in severe decline, including the planting of more than 500,000 trees, plants and shrubs.

Anecdotally, the new herd seems to be nothing short of goat superstars. These goats are younger and less domesticated than previous Prospect Park goats, making them particularly voracious. “They’ve cleared it like champs,” said Keehbauch, “you must come and see them.”  

Prospect Park Archives

City Funding For Prospect Park Improvements Announced

July 24, 2017

Prospect Park Alliance, the non-profit organization that cares for the Park in partnership with the City, has announced that the City’s Fiscal Year 2018 budget includes more than $7.6 million in capital funding for improvement projects in Prospect Park. 

“We thank Mayor Bill de Blasio, the City Council and Borough President Eric L Adams for allocating these funds so that the Alliance can continue its work restoring and advancing the Park,” said Sue Donoghue, Prospect Park Alliance President.  “We are so grateful for the support of our local elected officials so that we can improve the Park for the millions of community members who consider it Brooklyn’s Backyard.”

The following projects received capital funding:

Prospect Park Tennis House Restoration: Mayor Bill de Blasio and the City Council, led by Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and the Brooklyn Delegation, have provided $5.1 million for Prospect Park Alliance to restore the historic Prospect Park Tennis House. Located along the Long Meadow near the Park’s 9th Street entrance, the Tennis House has been closed to the public for the last decade. This funding will allow the Alliance to restore this beautiful structure, which was designed by the same architect as the Prospect Park Boathouse, and originally served as a facility for lawn tennis players at the turn of the 19th century.

Parkside Avenue Perimeter Restoration: Borough President Eric L. Adams has provided $1 million in funding for the Alliance to restore the Parkside Avenue perimeter of the Park, including reconstructing the sidewalk, new lighting and street furniture, and planting new trees. This continues the Alliance’s work to restore the perimeter of the east side of the Park, including Flatbush and Ocean Avenue perimeters, which are also being funded by the Borough President, as well as Council Members Laurie Cumbo and Mathieu Eugene.

“The Parkside Avenue perimeter, as part of the greater eastern border of Prospect Park, is crucial to bringing greater equity to the open space experiences all Brooklynites seek,” said Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams. “I am proud to support this restoration through my capital budget.”

Long Meadow Ball Fields 2 and 3 Restoration: Council Member Brad Lander contributed $750,000 to complete the Alliance’s ongoing restoration of the Long Meadow Ball Fields. Through the support of the Brooklyn Borough President’s Office, Council Members Brad Lander and Stephen Levin, and the New York City Council Brooklyn Delegation, the Alliance has already restored Fields 1, 6 and 7, and Fields 4 and 5 are currently in the design phase. The project includes new drainage to better handle storm water runoff, restoring the playing fields, new pathways, lighting and benches, dedicated clay storage bins and shaded dugouts.

Parade Ground Restoration: Council Member Mathieu Eugene dedicated $734,000 for the Alliance to replace the turf on Field 9 at the Parade Ground, a beloved destination for sports in the Park. The fields at the Parade Ground see heavy use, and replacing the turf at Field 9 will make it safer and more enjoyable for all who use it.

To learn more about improvement projects in the Park, please visit the Prospect Park Alliance Capital Projects Tracker.

 

Brooklyn Historical Society

Alliance + Brooklyn Historical Society Present 150th Exhibition

July 17, 2017

Related Programming: Urban Health, Urban Parks: The Salve of the City

In celebration of the Park’s 150th Anniversary, Brooklyn Historical Society and Prospect Park Alliance present The Means of a Ready Escape: Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, an exhibition that highlights the 150-year social history of Brooklyn’s Backyard. The collaboration between BHS and Prospect Park Alliance tells the story of the 585 acres of forest, field and swamp that Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux were charged with transforming into an urban oasis that would sustain generations of Brooklynites to come. The exhibition opened to the public on Thursday, July 13, 2017.

The Park has never been simply an escape from the city, but a fundamental part of it. Brooklyn and Prospect Park have grown and changed together. Turn-of-the-century swan boats, carriage rides, and lawn tennis are long gone, replaced by in-line skaters, birders, dog-walkers, and drummers. But the aspiration to provide, in Olmsted’s words, “simple, temperate, healthful, rural and domestic forms of recreation” to Brooklyn’s “overworked inhabitants” is, perhaps, more fully realized today than ever before. Throughout its history the people of Brooklyn, and many others, have used, shared, and shaped Prospect Park.

Visitors to The Means of a Ready Escape will learn that sheep roamed the Long Meadow until the 1930s, Brooklyn’s middle-class black families chose Prospect Park over closer green spaces because it was a place where they “felt welcome,” Robert Moses’ efforts to modernize the Park resulted in paving grassy areas for parking lots, and that Adele, a Park Slope caretaker, famously led children into the Park to play, introducing them to the safe haven it could be, despite the era in which the Park fell into disrepair. As the borough changed, so did the Park. The fiscal crisis of the seventies coincided with early waves of gentrification in surrounding neighborhoods. Lacking facilities staff to maintain its infrastructure, the park became perceived as notoriously unsafe. The gem-like boathouse we know today was then used as a recycling center. Paths and fences went unrepaired. The non-profit Prospect Park Alliance was formed in the eighties, in an effort to sustain, restore and advance the Park. Examples of the hard work of compromise within a public park space, like rules around barbequing, the creation of the Drummers Grove, and car access in the park, are explored. Because the bones that comprised its foundation were so very sound, the Park has endured. 

This history is told through panels and over 150 artifacts and documents including numerous postcards, scrapbooks, posters and photographs that reflect the ongoing relationship between the park and its many users. Visitors will enjoy viewing Olmsted and Vaux’s original plan of the Park, 1920s objects like tape measures and paper weights that depict scenes from the Park, hand drawn renderings from the 1990s of the Park’s woodlands restoration, and a model of the AIA National Honor Award-winning Samuel J. and Ethel LeFrak Center at Lakeside by Tod Williams and Billie Tsien Architects in collaboration with Prospect Park Alliance, which opened in 2013. 

For hours and directions, please visit the Brooklyn Historical Society website.

 

Martin Seck

Community Weighs In on Future of Rose Garden

June 13, 2017

On a recent Saturday afternoon, Prospect Park Alliance gathered Brooklynites of all ages in the Prospect Park Boathouse to reimagine the Park’s Rose Garden. Suggestions, written on colorful cards and placed in a 3D model of the space, ranged from the practical—bathrooms and event spaces—to the fanciful—outdoor kitchens and trampolines!

Interested in sharing your vision for the Rose Garden? Take our survey!

This community visioning session was an opportunity for Park lovers to share their ideas for the Rose Garden, one of the Park’s hidden gems. Prospect Park Alliance is working with Hester Street Collaborative, a non-profit organization focused on improving the physical environment in underserved NYC neighborhoods to engage the community in the future vision for the Rose Garden—the first step in the Alliance’s plans to restore this landscape in the Park’s northeast corner.

The 2.5-acre landscape is tucked away in the northeast corner of Prospect Park in a heavily wooded area that is surrounded by steep hillsides. The area was originally designed by Park creators Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux as a Children’s Playground, complete with play equipment and a horse-driven carousel. In 1885, as part of the City Beautiful Movement, the landscape was transformed into a rose garden, featuring beautiful flowering trees and plants, and three pools with goldfish and lilypads. Over the years, the area fell into disuse. A 1960s attempt to restore the pools was unsuccessful, and the area has gone largely unnoticed and underused—until now.

“Since its founding, Prospect Park Alliance has been focused on renewing the Park for the enjoyment of all of Brooklyn,” said Sue Donoghue, president of Prospect Park Alliance. “Through this innovative community engagement process, we are looking to involve all of the diverse communities that consider the Park ‘Brooklyn’s Backyard’ in the future vision of this corner of the Park, one of the few remaining landscapes untouched by restoration.”

During the June 10 design workshop, visitors of all ages were asked to give their opinion of what should occupy the Rose Garden. Interactive models of the 2.5-acre space filled up quickly with idea-covered stickers, and over 40 attendees participated in a visioning activity to discuss the potential opportunities with members of their community. At the end of the event, Turnstile Tours, which operates walking tours throughout the Park, brought participants to the Rose Garden to learn about the history of the space, and see it firsthand. Dozens of suggestions were collected as a result of the event, and popular suggestions included an outdoor classroom, a flower garden and a cafe.

The project is possible thanks to the generous support of the Altman Foundation. “The Altman Foundation—which celebrated its centennial in 2013—has an historic interest in ensuring that individuals and families living in the city have access to resources that help them thrive, and we believe that well-maintained parks and open spaces are critical to the well-being of each of us and New York as a whole,” said Deborah T. Velazquez, Associate Director at the Altman Foundation.  “Projects like these that allow local stakeholders to be engaged in planning that shapes how capital is deployed lead to strong results, and help long-standing institutions remain vibrant and dynamic.”

The Alliance is looking to gather input from a wide variety of communities that border the Park and use the Park regularly. Over the course of the summer and fall, the Alliance and Hester Street Collaborative will be reaching out to the community in a variety of settings to help determine the future design of this space. In the month of July, a community art project—The Connective Project—will bring an immersive art installation to the area. During that time, July 7-17, the public will be able to give input on the future of the Rose Garden. 

Want to make your voice heard? Learn how you can get involved in this Rose Garden planning process.

Martin Seck

Spring Fundraising Success

June 2, 2017

In May of 2017, Prospect Park Alliance undertook an ambitious fundraising goal, and challenged the community to raise $50,000 for Prospect Park in order to unlock a matching gift. This matching challenge was made possible by longtime Prospect Park Alliance supporters Lorraine and Gordon DiPaolo, hoping to galvanize the community to support the Park.

Funds raised by Prospect Park Alliance go towards essential Park services, such as the collection of over 7 million pounds of litter each year, the care and maintenance of Park trees and 250 acres of woodlands, and the free public programs that are provided to 450,000 youth and adults each year.

As you enjoy the Park this summer, thank yourself and all the generous members of this community for rising to the challenge and doing your part to keep this special place green and vibrant. Our spring fundraising challenge was a great success, and we exceeded our goal! Because you helped us raise more than $57,000, longtime Prospect Park Alliance supporters Lorraine and Gordon DiPaolo have made a gift of $50,000 to support the Alliance.

As we continue our celebrations of the Park’s milestone 150th year, we’re better prepared than ever to honor our historic past and celebrate our bright future. 

Learn more about how you can get involved and give back to your favorite Park.