From the Daily News:
Global warming recently hit the South Pole on the Unisphere, where blades of grass sprouted through cracks in the steel around Antarctica.
City officials suspect that bird droppings and leaves collected in the base of the 12-story landmark, providing the perfect conditions for germination when seeds blew in and feasted on rain water.
"I've never seen such growth coming out of the Unisphere," marveled Queens Parks Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski.
The Parks Department, which learned about the vegetation when the Daily News inquired on Wednesday, had uprooted all the greenery by Thursday morning.
But locals who recalled the Unisphere as the gleaming centerpiece of the 1964 World's Fair wondered how the city let the unofficial symbol of Queens become a plant pot from May to August.
"If this was in Manhattan, the Unisphere would be pristine and it'd be polished every year," said Karyn Karmin, 46, of Forest Hills. "It's really sad."
10 comments:
Lewandowski needs too use the bathroom
They cleanup the park, Unisphere and turn on its pumps every year for the US Open.
Come Labor Day Its back to 50 weeks of neglect.
The lights for the major citys no longer work
Marvelling at her statement - I've never seen such growth coming out of Dorothy Lewandowski.
Global warming.
because they dont care about the unisphere until about the time of the u.s. open then they sand blast all the ledges the skaters waxed up kick out all the skaters who have been using the unisphere as a make shift skate park for 20 + years turn on the fountians for the short amount of time the u.s. open is here and do some sweeping for once to make it look all pretty for the tourist ... after the u.s. open is yet again open season for the regulars to not get harrassed by the heightened police pressences as they hang out in the unisphere once more and the cycle starts again
-anon skater of the unisphere since 89
All true.
About the fountains.
They cant run them all summer without a 24-7 "baby sitter".
Problem is the 3rd world tweeds that inhabit the area in 2009 use the Unisphere basin as a pool, spituna and a bathroom.
Many of these people have TB btw
Turn them pumps on after days of heat, feet and piss and you have an airborn viral coctail that can kill people.
You cant clorinate a fountain that size, the chlorine just evaporates. Them lazy ex cons,fathers, sons and brother-n-laws at parks dont like extra work or bringing in more people.
The Unisphere has 2 pumps and a wind speed sensor. See old 1964 pix with both pumps on
Snap quiz.
If they kept the Unisphere polished, all the lights working and the fountains running, how many people would praise Dotty for a sound allocation of Parks Department funds?
She needs to be praised for simply doing her job correctly? How sad.
Strawman.
No special praise for Dotty here-- just pointing out that people like to bitch.
Of course they're going to spruce up the park for the open. If it wasn't for the open, they'd do it for the solar eclipse.
There are plenty of people and engineers still around who know those Worlds Fair structures more then anybody.
Lewandowski can find any info she needs to sort some of this mess out on the "Peace Through Understanding" 1964 Fair sight. Including the NYSP building manager Chas who knows every nut and bolt from the pyle caps to the beacon
The Mayor and his appointed idiots wont hear a word they say.
I think it would be cool if someone were to green the unisphere by puposely planting some type of climbing vines on the unisphere. I think the parks department gardeners could do this. It would add some beauty and oxygen to FMP
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