Proposed Queens Park at Kosciuszko Bridge. (NYSDOT)
Oct. 19, 2018 By Nathaly Pesantez
A new park is in the works for Queens as part of the Kosciuszko Bridge project, with officials inviting the community to give input on it in a scoping meeting next week.
The meeting, set for Oct. 23 at Sunnyside Community Services, covers the proposed park on essentially two remote blocks along 43rd Street between 54th and 55th Avenues, flush against the Queens approach of the bridge.
The park’s proposed area is within Community Board 2, and considered to be part of Maspeth, just south of Sunnyside and Woodside.
The park is still in its very early stages, but is expected to span more than 30,000 square feet between two parcels. The design process is kicking off this year, with the park expected to open in spring 2022.
State and city officials say the park can provide opportunities for a variety of active and passive features, which the community can help narrow in on at the scoping meeting and subsequent public comment periods.
Some features are already included in the park’s design, such as a comfort station, seating areas, bicycle racks, drinking fountains, and trash receptacles.
The park would be built out by the New York State Department of Transportation, and be transferred over to NYC Parks to maintain once completed.
The scoping process is expected to take about three months, with NYSDOT expecting to present a conceptual design to the community in early 2019, according to Joseph Morrissey, DOT spokesperson.
Officials said at a 2017 Community Board 2 meeting that the park will be a “destination” location.
“We want it to be something that people would want to go to, so it’s more of a magnet kind of park,” said Jim Lau from the state DOT.
A park on the Queens side as part of the bridge project has been in the works for roughly a decade, according to Robert Adams, project director for the Kosciuszko Bridge Project.
The scoping meeting will be held at Sunnyside Community Services, located at 43-31 39th St., from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Oct. 23. RSVP to Helen Neuhaus by phone at 212-532-4175 or email at hna@hna1977.com
The park location as seen today. (Google Maps)
