After the looming red and white Elmhurst gas tanks were dismantled, a fight broke out over what to build at the six-acre sight. KeySpan, which owned the property, wanted to sell the site to developers for retail space. The local community, however, said the space should become a park. After a few years of fighting, the community won in 2004, and Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other local politicians officially opened the new Elmhurst Park on Monday.
“Up until the mid-1990s, this land was occupied by the Keyspan Newtown gas holders, more commonly known as the Elmhurst gas tanks,” said Bloomberg. The city purchased the land in 2004 for one dollar, and the city designed the new park using input from the community. “The result is a swath of open space so completely transformed that it really is difficult to recall what this old industrial site used to look like,” Bloomberg continued.
Elmhurst is one of the city’s most densely populated areas, and its population grew by more than 60 percent since the 1980s, Bloomberg said. The Mayor has been a fierce advocate of creating new parks, and Elmhurst Park is another example of the city fulfilling its PlaNYC initiative—creating a “greener, greater New York.”
The new park, between 57th and Grand avenues, just north of the Long Island Expressway, is designed for passive recreation and boasts more than 620 trees, a new playground, decorative fountains and innovative play-pieces such as a stationary bike that glows as children pedal.
As residents enjoyed the new green oasis, they were reminded that the area was dangerously close to housing a big box retailer—most likely a Home Depot. “Along with Mayor Bloomberg, local officials and community groups, I am proud to have been a part of the effort to turn the dream of a park at the KeySpan site into a reality,” Congressman Joe Crowley said. “Now, instead of an eyesore or a big box retailer, we have a beautiful park that Queens residents can enjoy for years to come.”
In 2001, KeySpan indicated that it would sell the site, and dozens of developers showed interest. By the winter of 2002, the Mattone Group and KeySpan entered a preliminary agreement to purchase the property and build retail stores. Through constant community activism, led by the Juniper Park Civic Association (JPCA), KeySpan agreed to meet with local elected officials and delay the sale of the property until the end of 2003 so the politicians could determine if they could acquire funds to purchase the site.
However, by the fall of 2003, JPCA President Bob Holden learned that the Mattone Group already negotiated a contract with KeySpan to purchase the site for $12 million. KeySpan and Mattone Group representatives said nothing was final, but Holden said KeySpan was reneging on its promise to wait until the end of the year.
A fierce battle commenced until Bloomberg helped negotiate with KeySpan, and the city purchased the site for a dollar. Holden and other members of the JPCA attended Monday’s rally holding signs that read, “Thank you Mayor Bloomberg,” for his help in making the park a reality.
City Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe commended the community activists for fighting for the park. “The Juniper Park Civic Association really stepped up,” he said.
Other politicians at the event also stressed the importance of working together with the community. “This wonderful park is a tribute to how great things happen when government and the community work together,” Assemblywoman Marge Markey said.
Holden said he was proud of the work the JPCA did for Elmhurst Park. “It’s a great park, that’s the bottom line,” he said.
by Eric Yun
