Published June 16. 2026 02:44PM<\/p>\n
Bethlehem\u2019s Friendship Park celebrated a grand reopening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Northside Alive\u2019s Block Party on May 16. The approximately 1.3-acre park, formerly a concrete slab with worn-down basketball hoops and an old playground set, is now filled with green grass and new amenities, including a splashpad, full-size basketball court, swings, and a restored play set structure.<\/p>\n
The revitalization was a part of the City of Bethlehem\u2019s \u201c40 in 10\u201d initiative, the goal of which is to revitalize 40 parks across the city over the course of 10 years. The project is being supported by both local and state governments, as well as the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. DCNR Bureau of Recreation and Conservation Regional Manager Lorne Possinger attended the event to show DCNR support for the initiative and the importance of parks in local communities. Possinger noted that the project wouldn\u2019t have been possible without community support.<\/p>\n
\u201c[We] have the recreational priorities set by the people that actually live here,\u201d said Possinger. Local residents shared in Possinger\u2019s joyful sentiment, including Bethlehem residents Roxann and Rolf Goellnitz, who live in one of the homes immediately outside of the park\u2019s gate.<\/p>\n
\u201c(Before renovations) it was a piece of cement and a conduit for trouble makers. Now it is a conduit for families\u2026 there is lots to enjoy,\u201d said Roxann Goellnitz. Families like the Hahns who live nearby, are thrilled to have the space updates. Kayla Hahn says the park will provide a new space for her and her 13-month-old son to get outdoors.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s gonna be a fun summer. We love going for walks and he\u2019s going to love it here,\u201d said Hahn.<\/p>\n
The ribbon cutting took place at 3 p.m. The ribbon itself was held by Bethlehem Mayor J. William Reynolds, North Side Alive Neighborhood Coordinator Celina Daddario, State Rep. Steve Samuelson, and two community members. The honor of cutting the ribbon went to three local Girl Scouts who stood proudly next to Mayor Reynolds.<\/p>\n
The park\u2019s facilities are open to the community from dawn to dusk, as per Bethlehem regulations.<\/p>\n
Crowds gather for the ribbon cutting ceremony at Friendship Park May 16.<\/p>\n
Crowds gather for the ribbon cutting ceremony at Friendship Park May 16.<\/p>\n
Mayor William J. Reynolds shares his thanks to the community for helping out with renovating Friendship Park.<\/p>\n
DCRN\u2019s Lorn Possinger, Mayor Reynolds, Rep. Steve Sammulson, and North Side Alive Neighborhood Coordinator Celine Daddario give testimonies outside of the mural in Friendship Park May 16.<\/p>\n
press photos by eric woodNorthside Alive Neighborhood Coordinator Celine Daddario, Mayor J. William Reynolds, DCRN\u2019s Lorn Possinger, Rep. Steve Sammulson and a group of Girl Scouts at the ribbon-cutting ceremony at Friendship Park.<\/p>\n
Children enjoying playtime on the newly installed tilt-a-whirl in Friendship Park.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Published June 16. 2026 02:44PM Bethlehem\u2019s Friendship Park celebrated a grand reopening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Northside…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":220675,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154],"class_list":["post-220674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=220674"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220674\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/220675"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=220674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=220674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=220674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}