Students at P.S. 229 in Woodside got to spend some time outside the building to celebrate the opening of the school’s new playground.
Nearly 1,000 students filled the newly-completed playground, which was built by Out2Play, a non-profit organization dedicated to building and refurbishing playgrounds throughout the New York City public school system.
The new playground, which began with input from students regarding the design back in September, provides space for students to play baseball or softball with bases and the pitcher’s mound, play basketball on the court with two keys and the half court circle drawn in, or even run around the track that is situated outside the outfield.
In addition, the playground contains a large mural, which started out as a sketch on the wall in the school. The mural was also completed by students.
During the June 22 ceremony, students were treated to a performance from the NYPD Drum Line and received a lesson about the different drums the band members used.
The new playground space was made possible through funding from City Councilmember Elizabeth Crowley and Borough President Helen Marshall.
“Thank you for our beautiful park,” said one youngster as he was presenting flowers to Crowley and Sarah Gilbert, Program Administrator for Out2Play.
“We love it,” said another youngster.
With more than half of New York City elementary schools lacking playground access, Out2Play is trying to increase the quality of life of those children – something Crowley agrees is a result of additional playgrounds.
“The whole neighborhood is a better place now that we have this schoolyard,” said Crowley, who caught the first pitch at the new field from the school’s valedictorian.
Marshall could not attend the ceremony, but she released a statement talking about her work with Out2Play.
“As Borough President, I have partnered a number of times with the not-for-profit Out2Play organization – the brainstorm of Andrea Wenner – and been happy to help fulfill its mission to provide children with safe, fun and developmentally beneficial play space by leveraging private sector resources for building and refurbishing school playgrounds,” Marshall said in a statement.
of Out2Play and Councilmember Elizabeth Crowley got flowers from students for their help with the new playground.
