Gentile Gets $6.5 Million To Renovate Bensonhurst Park
City Council Member Vincent J. Gentile (Bay Ridge) and the City have allocated over $6.5 million for the beginning stages of the renovation of Bensonhurst Park on Cropsey Avenue in Gravesend Bay.
Gentile has allocated over $2.9 million of the capital funding for the makeover with the remainder being contributed by Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito ($2.3 million), Mayor Bill de Blasio ($1 million) and Council Member Mark Treyger ($300,000).
Initial renovations, while preliminary, plan to include a complete redesign and reconstruction of the playground and spray fountain as well as the realignment and repaving of the park’s paths and plaza, installation of new benches and game/cafe tables as well as new drainage, water and lighting systems.
“It has been a quarter of a century since Bensonhurst Park has seen major capital improvements. This park has the potential to be one of the great greenspaces in Brooklyn and all of New York. I am proud to have allocated and advocated for the necessary funding to get this project off the ground and I look forward to the scoping and community input meeting in the near future. I thank the Speaker, the Mayor and my colleague for joining me in this exciting capital project,” said Gentile.
The scoping and community input meeting is expected to take place sometime late summer or early fall. Council Member Gentile’s office wants your suggestions for Bensonhurst Park’s improvements! Email him atvgentile@council.nyc.gov.
Simon Seeks Input For A New Gowanus
Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon (Downtone Brooklyn, Carroll Gardens, Boerum Hill, Gowanus) is seeking community input to reshape a new Gowanus.
“Bridging Gowanus is a community planning process to shape a sustainable, livable, and inclusive future for the Gowanus neighborhood – in the face of ongoing change, the Superfund cleanup, and real estate pressure.
“From 2013 to 2015, several hundred people took part in a series of large- and small-group meetings to explore local issues and develop recommendations. We are now seeking feedback to prioritize these recommendations.
“Starting in the fall of 2016, the community will begin working with the NYC Department of City Planning and other government agencies to develop a planning and land-use framework for the Gowanus neighborhood.
Getting Gowanus right will take a different way of doing things. Inaction will not preserve what makes Gowanus unique today. But new growth must genuinely advance the community’s goals.”
Go to the Bridging Gowanus for more information.
Williams, Adams, Weinstein Host Annual Senior Concert
City Council Member Member Jumaane D. Williams (Flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood), Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams, and Assembly Member Helene E. Weistein (Flatlands, Sheepshead Bay) today will host the 4th Annual Senior Concert.
There will be a live band, as well as performances by Philip Howard NORC Senior, and the Midwood Neighborhood Steel Pan.
Richardson Family Fun Day Honors James E. Davis
Assembly Member Diana Richardson (Crown Heights, Lefferts Gardens), and 43rd Assembly Democratic District Leaders Geoffrey Davis and Shirley Patterson tomorrow will pay homage
to the late City Councilman and non-violent activist James E. Davis on Family Day.
The day will feature rides, free food, music, resource information for local residents and other activities.
“Brooklyn has been blessed to have fearless leaders who have stood in the gap and have served as a strong source of inspiration. We have been propitious in this particular district to have leaders who are with us such as Mary Pinkett, Shirley Chisolm, and James E. Davis who have carried a strong message of community to our people and to their legislative bodies, to incite change amidst violence an uncertain times,” said Richardson.
While we celebrate all of our leaders on August 20, we recognize the late James E, Davis and his endless contributions to this community and society as a whole. We acknowledge this, not only in the 43rd Assembly District or New York, but throughout America, where we are faced with violence and struggle as a nation to look for solutions,” she added.
The event is slated for between 10 a.m. – 8 p.m., tomorrow Aug. 20 on Empire Boulevard between Nostrand and Rogers avenues.
Adams Hosts Senior Bingo
Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams today will host more than 500 local senior citizens at his third annual “Seniors by the Sea,” a free celebration in the Marine Academic Center at Kingsborough Community College featuring a catered lunch, games, musical entertainment, photo booths, and senior-targeted resources from service providers.
Along with leading a rousing game of “Brooklyn Bingo,” Adams will discuss initiatives he has developed to recognize seniors for their many community contributions and empower them through greater attention for their safety, welfare, and personal enrichment.
The event is slated for 11:30 a.m. today at Kingsborough Community College, 2001 Oriental Boulevard in Manhattan Beach.
