Detective Joseph Mayrose Park

This parkland honors Detective Joseph Mayrose (1949-1989), a dedicated police officer, husband, and father of three. Mayrose was born and raised in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. He attended Saint Anselm’s grammar school and graduated from Bishop Ford High School, located across the street from this park. At Bishop Ford, Mayrose was enrolled in the police trainee program, and joined the police force immediately after graduating from high school.

A member of the 72nd Precinct in Park Slope, Brooklyn, Mayrose reached the rank of Detective 3rd grade in 1981. He is remembered for being a dedicated and efficient officer. Mayrose died in a car accident on June 1, 1989, while driving to his home in Eltingville, Staten Island. This park was officially named Detective Joseph Mayrose Park by a local law of 1990. Sponsored by Councilman Stephen DiBrienza at the request of Community Board 7, a ceremony on July 27, 1990 formally dedicated this park to Mayrose.

In 1952, the City began acquiring land for the nearby Prospect Expressway. The Expressway plan called for a series of parks to be built along its route. There are now 15 parks along the 2.1 mile-long Prospect Expressway, totaling 6.748 acres. This plot of land, located on the north side of the Prospect Expressway between 6th and 7th Avenues at 17th Street, was acquired in October of 1952 and turned over to Parks in 1953. The park opened in 1956. The final sections of parkland, at the end of the Expressway along Fort Hamilton Parkway, were acquired in 1958. After many delays, the $28,000,000 Prospect Expressway was finally completed in the fall of 1962.

This park was reconstructed through New York State Department of Transportation funding in 1996. Community residents requested a site for passive recreation, and thus this park contains no play equipment. The park does feature brick paths, benches, and a flagpole with a yardarm and marble base. The eastern section of the park supports a gated flower garden. Vegetation throughout the park includes assorted shrubs, pin oaks (Quercus palustris), dogwoods (Cornus coreana), and London planetrees (Platanus x acerifolia). A popular leisure spot for local residents, this park also serves as a memorial to a dedicated police officer whose life was tragically cut short.