Leadership at NYC Parks

830 Fifth Ave
New York, NY, 10065

(212) 360-1305

Contact Commissioner Donoghue

Sue Donoghue was appointed Commissioner of NYC Parks in February 2022. She has made equity and sustainability top priorities as Parks works to promote the health and well-being of New Yorkers and their communities, strengthening livability. 

During Commissioner Donoghue’s first three years, Parks completed nearly 340 capital projects, representing more than $1.1 billion in investments in NYC’s neighborhoods. These projects have included resiliency elements to mitigate extreme heat, capture carbon, and slow and filter storm water to improve NYC’s environment. The Agency also reached its highest tree planting number in six years, focusing on expanding tree cover in neighborhoods in the most heat vulnerable neighborhoods. Under Commissioner Donoghue’s leadership, Parks has also deepened its commitment to M/WBE contractors for tree planting and capital projects. Parks has expanded recreational and cultural programming at 14 recreation centers in neighborhoods most impacted by COVID-19, and through its Second Shift initiative now deploys 500 additional cleaning staff for evenings and weekend hours to ensure parks in underserved neighborhoods are well cared for.

In June 2024, Commissioner Donoghue launched Vital Parks for All: Investing in NYC’s Living Infrastructure, a plan to equitably strengthen the health, environment and communities of NYC through our parks system. The plan includes an initial $3.2 billion investment to deliver more Vital Parks elements to neighborhoods that need them most: shoring up aging infrastructure; adding new amenities to expand access to high-quality public green spaces, and empowering New Yorkers through public programs and data tools to better celebrate and advocate for their parks. Among the ten strategic initiatives tied to Vital Parks is Let’s Swim NYC, a more than $1 billion capital investment to restore aging pool facilities and build new pools, representing the city’s highest period of investment in swimming infrastructure since the 1970s. The initiative was reinforced by a $5 million swim expansion program that will enable us to teach 18,000 public school students how to swim, enhancing swim safety.  The Vital Parks plan also advances Stronger Parks, Safer Communities, a $400 million investment in play and facility upgrades in neighborhoods with high levels of gun violence, along with over 1,000 outdoor public programs to activate parks and build community- improving safety, health and livability.

Prior to her appointment, Commissioner Donoghue served as President of Prospect Park Alliance, the non-profit organization that operates the park in partnership with the City of New York, where she led the revitalization of its 585 acres, creating the first new entrances to the park since the 1940s; expanding the park's natural areas, restoring key recreational amenities and securing $40 million for the reconstruction of the 26-acre Vale of Cashmere. From 2007 to 2014, she served as a Senior Advisor and Assistant Commissioner at NYC Parks, where she spearheaded the agency’s work on PlaNYC, Mayor Bloomberg’s blueprint for enhancing the sustainability of NYC. 

Sue Donoghue earned a master's in public administration from NYU’s Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service. She is a long-time New Yorker, and she and her husband and three children avidly enjoy New York City parks.