Oh, yay! Mayor Bloomberg is opening a park on a schoolyard at IS73 in Maspeth. Let's have a peek...
That's strange...why would they put kiddie equipment in a Junior High schoolyard, especially when there is already a schoolyard-turned-park mere blocks away at PS58 geared toward the youngsters?
This is where kids used to recreate by playing ball. Now it looks like it will become a parking lot, or just a much smaller schoolyard to accommodate an ever growing population of kids, who will be hanging out there after school intimidating the little ones.Bloomberg sounds like the kind of guy who knows exactly what this community wants and needs.
12 comments:
Amazingly these schoolyards to playgrounds are being planned all over Queens with little or no actual community input. Bloomy's people just meet with the school folks and call that involving the community. Little or no reach out to other stakeholders takes place. They seem to forget that these playgrounds will be open to the public after school hours. They're spending city capital dollars to build them but are by-passing any review of the preliminary or final designs. There are many legitimate questions they fail to even consider, much less attempt to address.
"Bloomberg sounds like the kind of guy who knows exactly what this community wants and needs."
Yes Crappy, it is amazing that the Mayor of a city of 8 million does not know what is going on in this tiny playground in Middle Village. It is just a shame that he has nothing better to do.
Actually, it's in Maspeth, and Schoolyards to Playgrounds is a citywide initiative.
"Actually, it's in Maspeth, and Schoolyards to Playgrounds is a citywide initiative."
Yes, I am aware. But the tone you set suggests that he should be standing above the blueprints for each park. He sets the policy, its up to the agencies to make it work. Obviously they are not doing a good job at it.
And those agencies report to....?
Oh, yeah, Mayor Bloomberg. He appointed the commissioners.
Sorry, when you are the head cheese, you take the blame.
Amazingly these schoolyards to playgrounds are being planned all over Queens with little or no actual community input.
You can be so lucky. In Astoria, schoolyards are being turned into development sites (Variety Club), libraries (LIC branch) and school rooms (everywhere.)
You see, the immigrants are welcome to be expoited as workers or tenants. The true attitude the clubhouse has to them is how they treat the nonproductive element of that population: the kids.
They are beneath the radar. A cost to be ignored.
the schoolyard is complete and it's finally open. you say that the "community" had no say in what when into the schoolyard, when it was students themselves who attend the school who decided what they'd like there. don't comment unless you know the facts.
Yes, the students who bus in from Elmhurst and Ridgewood chose what would be there. Not the people who live in the community.
"Bloomy's people just meet with the school folks and call that involving the community."
"you say that the "community" had no say in what when into the schoolyard, when it was students themselves who attend the school who decided what they'd like there."
Anonymous, you just proved the first commenter's point. Congrats.
I'd like to know how anyone can assume that 1) students and school centered communities are non-entities and 2) why would anyone state that of these students, which are bused-in, but who also live in the immediate area, are not part of the greater community: Queens ans the city of New York?
Kudos to the organizers and the students who made the park a reality.
By-the -by...middle schoolers need a place to play...they are not adults...they are kids 6th grade to 8th grade (11-13 year olds).
Students who are bussed in go home and play in their own neighborhood playgrounds and parks. These Schoolyards-to-Parks are supposed to be geared toward the people in the surrounding community WHERE THE SCHOOL IS and no one asked them.
And once again 11-13 year olds are not using jungle gyms and slides at that age. They want to play sports.
I work at I.S 73, and the students LOVE the playground. You can't tell from those pictures bc it wasn't finished, but there are basketball courts, a track and giant grassy area in the middle where the kids play football. The kids hang out in the jungle gym area as well, it's not a baby jungle gym. They are 11-13 years old and may not have a place like that near them if they are bused in. They use the area all day through all lunch periods and outside gym, so I would think their input for the yard is important. We also have an after school program for the middle schoolers who stay out their for hours until parents can come pick them up.
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