Students, city and state officials break ground

It happens every March and April. The gray of winter is eventually replaced by spring's brilliant green. And for residents and visitors to the Lower East Side, this year promises an even greater transformation than usual. A groundbreaking ceremony Thursday in Sara D. Roosevelt Park marked the start of a reconstruction project that will replace the gray asphalt of the Hester and Canal Street Field with bright green synthetic turf.

"Synthetic turf is the wave of the future, and this new field will give the children of the Lower East Side a great place to play," said New York City Department of Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe at the morning ceremony. Benepe was joined by Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) President Kevin Rampe, State Senator Martin Connor, City Council Member Alan Gerson, and students from nearby I.S. 131 to announce the $3 million project that will not only transform the athletic field, but also bring a new three-lane synthetic track, benches, park lighting, and water supply to the neighborhood park.

"Today's groundbreaking is a symbol of what is to come for Lower Manhattan," Rampe said. Indeed, the reconstruction of Sara D. Roosevelt Park is one of more than a dozen new and revitalized parks and green spaces planned for downtown, six of which will debut this spring. The park projects are part of a city-state initiative to bring greater open space to the downtown area, made possible thanks to $25 million commitment by the LMDC.

Sara D. Roosevelt Park schematic design

For information about additional open space projects planned for Lower Manhattan, please click here or visit the New York City Parks and Recreation Department website.

Photo by Spencer T. Tucker, NYC Parks & Recreation