COURIER L 12 IFE, APRIL 12–18, 2019 B
Cash for a cause at Luna Park
BY JULIANNE MCSHANE
Call them coasters for a cause.
Thrill-seeking Brooklynites hit
the rides at Coney Island’s Luna
Park on April 6 before it offi cially
opens for the summer season to raise
money for Children of Promise NYC,
an organization that serves children
of incarcerated people.
The April 6 event marked the unoffi
cial start of summer for one attendee,
who took the very fi rst ride of the year
on the world-famous Cyclone.
“It’s sort of symbolic to me as the
end of the winter,” said Gravesend resident
Cashel O’Sullivan.
The event was part of the park’s second
annual charity day, and featured
free rides on the Electro Spin, the Luna
360, and the park’s other amusements
for guests who donated $10 to Children
of Promise NYC.
A spokeswoman for the park
said it had not finished calculating
how much money the event raised
by press time, but said the donations
would go to Children of Promise
NYC’s teen program, which convenes
youngsters ages 14 to 18 in
SUMMER SCREAMS: Fun-lovers enjoyed
an inaugural ride on the Cyclone during
the fi rst ride of the year at Luna Park on
April 6. Photo by Steve Solomonson
COMING SOON: The comfort station at the Marlboro Playground in Gravesend will become
operational for the fi rst time in more than 20 years after it receives a $900,000 makeover
slated for next summer — but some locals claim the city’s plan to add only two toilets to the
structure falls short of locals’ needs. Photos by Steve Solomonson
BATHROOMS
Parks Department spends an average
of more than $3 million on each public
bathroom it builds in city parks — a cost
Silver blamed on market forces beyond
the department’s control.
Maher told Sanoff that the building’s
400-square-foot size, coupled with the
accessibility guidelines outlined by the
Americans with Disabilities Act, meant
that there is not room for more than one
toilet per gender, adding that the agency
also lacked the funding required to add
more toilets.
“Because of the codes and requirements,
there will wind up being one
toilet in each gendered bathroom —
there’s nothing anybody here can do
about that, that’s the amount we can
fi t. We always try to do the maximum,”
he said. “We would love to say we’ll put
in three or four toilets, but there’s not
room in the building for that, and there’s
not the budget for that.”
Ferguson did not respond to an inquiry
about how much each toilet cost to
procure and install.
And when Sanoff asked if offi cials
could at least add a porta-potty to the
playground so locals could relieve
themselves in the meantime, Maher
said the department also lacked the
cash for that.
“No, there hasn’t been a porta-potty
for the past 40 years — I don’t have
money in the budget for that kind of
thing,” Maher said.
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after school and summer camp programs
to help them prepare for college
and their careers.
Luna Park offi cially opens for the
season Saturday, April 13, at 11 a.m.