Ice in the schoolyard has made exiting PS 207 a problem for students and parents. Forum Photo by Michael V. Cusenza.
Patches of ice in the schoolyard at PS 207 in Howard Beach have made picking up children a daunting task for some guardians.
One concerned parent last week reached out to The Forum, imploring the newspaper to witness firsthand the dismissal process, and how the conditions in some parts of the yard, including ice-capped hills of snow, have caused some parents and students to slip and land awkwardly on the ice or the ground.
“I’ve seen parents fall—this is not a new issue,” said Maryann Butera, who was picking up her two grandchildren last Friday. “A lot of parents do complain. It’s dangerous for the little ones.”
Grades 6 through 8 exit the school from the front doors; the rest of the students are dismissed through the yard.
While the building on 159th Street is property of the Department of Education, the schoolyard falls under the Parks Department’s purview. When presented with the problem, a Parks spokeswoman said, “Our priority is to ensure that there is access around and within the schoolyard,” and emailed pictures she said were snapped by Parks staff last Friday.
“It’s highly dangerous,” said parent Kristine Diviney last Friday. “Just standing here now I’ve seen four or five kids fall. This is pathetic; the Parks Department should at least shovel.”
While as of Friday there were a number of wide paths that had been created in and around the yard, those ice-free spaces are few and far between when the children are released from the building, as hundreds of people—guardians, students and teachers—clog the area, forcing parents to walk over mounds of hardened snow and patches of black ice with their kids in tow.
“They don’t do a good job of cleaning up,” said Gabrielle Cestone, 20, who was picking up her brother last Friday from PS 207. “I think they should be putting more of a concern into it.”
By Michael V. Cusenza
