Meeting Notes for Town Hall 5/10

Approx 50 people showed up to PS 151 with delicious refreshments provided by the school. The meeting was hosted by Sandy Nurse and District 37. Members of CB4 and Parks Department were also present, as well as families and neighbors of the park. Conversation was led by Brooklyn Parks Chairman Marty Maher and hosted by Sandy Nurse. First, a presentation was made about the history of the park and past improvement efforts, followed by a short round of audience questions and closed with upcoming events.

History of the Park
The land for the park was originally sold to Brooklyn in 1895, before Brooklyn joined NYC. The park was laid out with curving paths and wrought iron picket fences, most of which are still present around the park. Originally, the park had a shelter in the center, later in the 60’s a recreation building was built and the park went through improvements. The last round of improvements were completed in 2007-2008 for $3mil, installing the current playground and public plaza and garden areas. Many trees have come down recently in wind storms or removed from disease and infestation.

Portland Loo
NYC has selected one park in each boro to test a new pilot program of pre-fabricated bathrooms, dubbed the Portland Loo. They have selected Irving Square Park as the park for Brooklyn, seeing that a public restroom has been identified as a top priority at the park by neighbors for the last 20 years. This restroom will be locked and unlocked daily during posted park hours (locked at 4:30pm in winter hours, 6pm in summer hours) and will have cleaning once or twice daily. The design is being fitted specifically to be “Brooklyn tough” and will discourage vandalism or elicit behavior. You can see existing versions in Portland Oregon, where the project originated.

Commissioner Maher reinforced that funding for the Loo is paid for by NYC and would not detract from other infrastructure projects (playground, dog run, etc) which are funded by limited discretionary funds from our City Council District 37.

Dog Run
Currently, there is a no legal dog run at Irving Square Park. The mulch area in the south was originally established as a passive recreation area and has been slowly stripped back of its components to discourage an “unofficial” dog run. While some neighbors mourn the loss the grassy area that was there decades ago, many neighbors have shown support for a dog run, but disagree as to where it should be placed or if the money exists to fund it. In particular, a student read a report from his second grade class voicing support for a dog run. While many dog owners at the meeting also voiced support for a dog run, civic officials outlined the possible path to completion that includes continuing to follow the posted rules of the park (off leash hours, no pets in children’s area, etc) as well as building trust with the community.

BK Parks Commissioner Marty Maher outlined the 4 points needed to establish a dog run. Additionally, he shared that the city is now implementing “Doggyturf” at its new dog runs to encourage irrigation, maintenance, use, and visual appeal. The Parks Commissioner and CB4 are very skeptical of advancing a dog run after overwhelming criticism following a 2014 scope meeting, plus an estimated price tag of over $1mil.

Playground
The playground in the north of the park was park of the last round of improvements, dating to 2007-2008. BK Parks Commissioner Maher mentioned that while it is approaching the end of it’s span, it has another few years until it is a high priority to replace. In addition, there are many evolving city guidances that make upgrading an existing park challenging (i.e. space for swings, distance from trees, etc). Right now, the park primarily serves kids ages 3-7 years old, with little activity for teens or pre-teens. Again, the student from his second grade class reported that the kids would like improvements done on the slides as they can cause injury.

Pride Flags
An attendee raised a question about if we can hang pride flags for June, which the Parks Department supports but which will have to be privately funded. Friends of Irving Square Park are securing funds to purchase the flags, which will be monitored and maintained by Parks Department for the month of June.

Rat Control
The Parks Department is monitoring the current rat situation, including oversight from the NYC’s new “Rat Czar”. Parks says that they have deployed non-toxic treatment throughout the park, as well as dry ice for nests.

Traffic Safety around the Park
One neighbor voicing concern over traffic safety around the park, in particular at the intersection of Knickerbocker and Weirfield with kids crossing the street and a blind corner due to construction. Following up with CB4, residents can report unsafe traffic conditions to the Community Board.

Participatory Funding Drive
El Puente, the community resource group, made a brief presentation about a current Participatory Funding Drive they are running to support many groups in the community. Any person over age 11 can vote for as many or few items as they’d like.

Upcoming Events
There are many upcoming events with the support of District 37 and CB4, most of which we have added to our calendar.