Pavilion may get volunteer facelift

From the Queens Chronicle:

Queens’ iconic rust bucket may be getting a spit shine and lead role in a movie.

A gang of local fellas and one curious passerby are looking to raise funds for various projects that would rejuvenate the New York State Pavilion and memorialize its unsung champions in a documentary, all in anticipation of the 50th Anniversary of the 1964-65 World’s Fair.

Only one thing stands in their way: funding.

One group is comprised of a crew of World’s Fair aficionados who have spent the last few years trying to undo the telltale signs of neglect scrawled around the entirety of the historic structure. They’ve gone so far as to repaint the red and white stripes on the Pavilion’s rotunda.

They’re planning to get the paint buckets, rollers and brushes out again this spring, after the Parks Department rubbed out splotches of the striped paint from the Pavilion’s interior while trying to remove graffiti from the landmarked structure.

But they’re looking to raise $2,500 through online donations at gofundme.com/1se3vg to fund the supplies needed to do the job. So far, they have raised $370 from nine donations, but are hoping through a bit of attention and good will to get closer to their goal.

The group plans to get to work when the weather warms up, sometime around April.

The State Pavilion was hit with an array of over a dozen bubble letters in various colors under the remnants of the “Tent of Tomorrow.” The Parks Department followed through on its promise to remove the graffiti. But now Silverstein, John Piro and several others need to put the stripes back where they belong.

“They basically powerwashed some of the original paint off,” Silverstein said. “That’s the only thing they can do.”