{"id":315840,"date":"2026-08-07T05:52:47","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T05:52:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/315840\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T05:52:47","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T05:52:47","slug":"queens-largest-park-is-getting-a-massive-120m-overhaul-including-a-22-5m-complete-reconstruction-of-its-historic-playground","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/315840\/","title":{"rendered":"Queens&#8217; largest park is getting a massive $120M overhaul\u2014including a $22.5M &#8216;complete reconstruction&#8217; of its historic playground"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Flushing-Meadows-Corona-Park-1024x683.jpg\" class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\" alt=\"Flushing Meadows Corona Park\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tShutterstock \/ Massimo Salesi<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A massive piece of Queens history is about to get a modern facelift.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Flushing Meadows Corona Park\u2014the borough\u2019s largest green space and home to NYC\u2019s largest lake (Meadow Lake at 93 acres)\u2014is officially stepping into a new era. Queens officials and community leaders have launched a unified push to reverse decades of chronic underfunding, committing over $120 million in overall park investments alongside a brand-new task force to restore the historic 900-acre site.<\/p>\n<p>From World\u2019s Fair Icon to Decades of Disinvestment<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Located in Corona, Flushing Meadows Corona Park is the crown jewel of Queens, but it has long suffered from crumbling infrastructure and severe flooding.<\/p>\n<p>The History: Originally built to host the 1939\u20131940 World\u2019s Fair (and later the 1964\u20131965 World\u2019s Fair), the grounds officially became a NYC public park in 1967 <\/p>\n<p>The Features:\u00a0It houses iconic landmarks including the Unisphere, two lakes, two museums, a theater, a zoo, and massive athletic venues like Citi Field and the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center<\/p>\n<p>The Problem: Despite hosting world-class events like the U.S. Open and Governors Ball\u2014and drawing over 9 million visitors annually\u2014the park\u2019s basic infrastructure has lagged. Most of its underground plumbing hasn\u2019t been updated since the World\u2019s Fairs, leading to constant water leaks and severe storm flooding<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, local leaders say they\u2019re ending the era of \u201cBand-Aid\u201d fixes.<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Flushing-Meadows-Corona-Park-Unisphere-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Flushing Meadows Corona Park Unisphere\" class=\"wp-image-387964\"  \/>Unsplash \/ Juan Karmy<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s Planned: A $22.5 Million Playground Overhaul &amp; Infrastructure Fixes<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The multi-phase transformation focuses on both immediate community upgrades and long-term climate resilience:<\/p>\n<p>$22.5M Reconstruction for the Playground for All Children: Originally built in 1984 as America\u2019s first playground designed specifically for both able-bodied kids and children with disabilities, the site hasn\u2019t seen major new funding since it opened. Backed by $17.5M from Queens Borough President Donovan Richards and $5M from Councilmember Shanel Thomas-Henry, the site will undergo a complete redesign to honor its original mission with state-of-the-art full accessibility<\/p>\n<p>Overhauling Underground Utilities: NYC Parks has invested tens of millions into hidden infrastructure, including $10+ million to rebuild electrical vaults damaged by Hurricane Sandy and $41 million for a tide gate bridge reconstruction to control flooding from Flushing Creek<\/p>\n<p>Restoring Iconic Landmarks: Over $56 million is dedicated to rebuilding the historic observation towers at the New York State Pavilion, with additional plans underway to restore the Unisphere\u2019s famous lights and fog sprinklers<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I spent my childhood in this park. I\u2019m 43 years old and not once in my lifetime has this park been meaningfully invested in\u2026 We will end this era of disinvestment in our backyard. \u2013 Borough President Donovan Richards<\/p>\n<p>The New Task Force: Holding Major Events Accountable<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To ensure the 900-acre park gets continuous TLC, Queens officials formed the Flushing Meadows Corona Park Task Force.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Co-chaired by BP Richards and promoter Mike Luba, the collective brings together local community boards, city agencies (DEP, DOT, NYC Parks), and major private partners that utilize the park space\u2014including Governors Ball, the USTA, and the New York Mets.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The goal? A unified effort to advocate for federal funding, coordinate interagency maintenance, and create a comprehensive master plan that ensures major commercial events give directly back to the park\u2019s upkeep.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Flushing Meadows Corona Park is the crown jewel of Queens. But the city has long treated it with disrespect and disinvestment.<\/p>\n<p>No more. <\/p>\n<p>Today, my office is announcing real action to deliver true investment to Flushing Meadows. Here are two ways we&#8217;ll be delivering just that\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/kwGr38l3hC\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/kwGr38l3hC<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Queens Borough President Donovan Richards (@QnsBPRichards) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/QnsBPRichards\/status\/2082926271168725418?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">July 30, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The Quick Details<\/p>\n<p>What: A $120M+ multi-project investment &amp; comprehensive master plan<\/p>\n<p>Where: Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Corona, Queens<\/p>\n<p>Key Highlight: A $22.5 million total reconstruction of the historic Playground for All Children near 111th Street<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Shutterstock \/ Massimo Salesi A massive piece of Queens history is about to get a modern facelift. Flushing&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":315841,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[9,24,63,122,124,123],"class_list":["post-315840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/315840","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=315840"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/315840\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/315841"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=315840"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=315840"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=315840"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}