Renovated Little Claremont Playground reopens
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BY ROBERT WIRSING
A popular Claremont park
has reopened just in time for
the spring season.
NYC Parks Commissioner
Mitchell Silver, Bronx Parks
Commissioner Iris Rodriguez-
Rosa, Councilwoman Vanessa
Gibson, NYC Department of
Environmental Protections
Bronx Borough Community
Liaison Eleftheria Ardizzone,
P.S. 42 students and staff and
residents joined in commemorating
the grand reopening of
the newly renovated Little Claremont
Playground on Wednesday,
February 27.
A Community Parks Initiative
site, the .55 acre playground’s
reconstruction was
funded with $3.7 million from
Mayor de Blasio and DEP.
The park’s reconstruction
commenced on August 29, 2017
following a groundbreaking
ceremony.
Through CPI, the city is investing
$318 million in capital
dollars to renovate 67 citywide
parks which have not undergone
signifi cant improvements
in decades.
“The transformation of Little
Claremont Playground is
an incredibly important im-
provement for this community
and especially for the students
and staff at P.S. 42 who use this
space so frequently,” expressed
Silver.
Its new amenities include
play equipment for children
ages 5 to 12-years-old, a water
play area with in-ground features
and spray posts, a multipurpose
synthetic turf fi eld, an
outdoor classroom with a stage
and landscape enhancements
and an improved community
garden.
Silver added that these new
amenities make Little Claremont
Playground the perfect
destination for local youth to
play, discover, learn and be
physically active.
DEP has partnered with
Parks to provide green infrastructure
which will capture
storm water runoff.
DEP Commissioner Vincent
Sapienza explained that
the park’s newly installed
rain gardens, permeable pavement
and synthetic turf fi eld
will aid in reducing stormwater
runoff by 1.5 million gallons
annually, improve the
Bronx Kill and Harlem River’s
health and beautify the neighborhood.
(l-r) PEP offi cer C. Guzman; Desiree Machicote; Bronx Parks Commissioner Rodriguez-Rosa; Councilwoman Gibson;
NYC Parks Commissioner Silver; Effi e Ardizzone; Lucia Orduz-Castillo, P.S. 42 principal and PEP offi cer
Edmondson were eager to cut the ribbon. Photo by Veronica Feliciano
“This new open space will
promote recreation, health and
wellness to the Claremont community
and I am thankful for
this commitment to enhance
open spaces for our children,
seniors and families and I look
forward to more investments
in our parks across the community,”
stated Gibson.
The park was once part of
the old Morris family estate established
in 1679.
Encompassed by Claremont
Parkway between Park and
Washington avenues, Little
Claremont Playground has a
rich history with nearby P.S.
42.
According to Desiree Machicote,
P.S. 42 Garden and Sustainability
coordinator and
science teacher, P.S. 42 and St.
Paul’s Church volunteers revitalized
the former vacant lot
serving as a garbage dump into
a vibrant GreenThumb Garden
in May 1994.
Every May, P.S. 42 hosts an
Earth Day celebration at the
park for students to engage
in hands-on lessons inside
the garden where they learn
proper planting techniques
and observe local wildlife.
Throughout the years, students
enjoyed planting marigolds,
geraniums and pansies
and harvesting cherries,
peaches, zucchinis and pumpkins
from the garden.
The garden has hosted the
Daffodil Project and Butterfl y
Project NYC.
Machicote and several volunteers
plan to reintroduce
fruits and vegetables to the new
community garden.
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