Broadway Park has opened up its gates to the community again just in time for summer.
On Monday morning, children climbed across a new jungle gym and ran around a newly surfaced playground after the park had been closed for nine months for what town officials called deeply needed renovations.
“It’s a very heavily used park. It was time for improvements,” said Kelly Gillen, the Town of North Hempstead’s park commissioner, who added that the park had been around since the 1970s. She said while there had been occasional minor renovations, there was a great deal of aging and outdated equipment that needed repair.
“As more children were using the park, we just thought it was important to focus on this,” Gillen said. “It’s a real neighborhood park. It’s obviously desperately needed, as people were waiting at the fence for it to open.”
The park, which has been under construction since October, now has a new jungle gym where a sandpit used to be, a splash pad with sprinklers, a large game board, a new playground structure and a soft “safety surface” across the entire park where wood chips once were. The walking paths are also repaved, lighting was updated and the fence surrounding the park was adjusted, making the entrance more inviting.
Council Member Christine Liu, whose district is adjacent to Broadway Park, said it’s one of the only parks on this side of New Hyde Park and one of the town’s only completely free, accessible-to-all parks, making the recent renovations even more necessary.
“This side of New Hyde Park hasn’t had as many nice parks, so this is a very welcome renovation,” Liu said. “Broadway Park has needed a makeover for a long time now. We’re really happy that the renovations were ready for this summer with a wonderful water spray pad and new playground equipment for all the residents to enjoy.”
North Hempstead Town Supervisor Jen DeSena also emphasized the need for a park in this area of the town. She added that the splash pad was beneficial, as it allowed children who can’t swim to cool off, and the newly paved walking paths and benches offered a nice public space for elderly residents.
“It’s just a great meeting place for the community,” DeSena said. “It is finished early and under budget, and it’s beautiful. It’s what this neighborhood deserves, just in time for summer, for the heat.”
The renovations totaled $1.2 million and were primarily funded by a Third Track Project grant from the Long Island Rail Road, which is meant for renovations like this that offset the negative impact of previous railroad construction. The remainder of the funding came from the Town of North Hempstead.
Howard Seidman, a counselor for the Progressive Athletic Summer Camp, said he was also glad to see the park reopen with improvements. He takes his campers there every Monday and Wednesday when camp is in session.
“We’re at Broadway Park again today, which is now phenomenal, because last week the playground wasn’t open,” said Seidman. He said the camp, which takes kids to different parks each day, was improved by the reopening, as now his campers can use the playground equipment as well as the courts they had previously been on.
“Open spaces are so important for our youth,” Seidman said. “Our camp policy is no tablets, no screens. That’s what they need. Hopefully, people who live in the community, whose kids are on tablets and screens, they’ll get them off of them, and they’ll come here to the park.”
Council Member Dennis Walsh, who represents the district where Broadway Park is, said he was excited to see the much-needed park improvements completed.
“I’m very much a part of this neighborhood, so whenever I can meet the needs of my community, I’m thrilled,” Walsh said. “You’ll be seeing a lot of me here this summer.”
Broadway Park is located at 150 Broadway and is open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. during the summer.
