Seth Low Playground/ Bealin Square

NYC PARKS CELEBRATES NEW RECREATION SPACE AT SETH LOW PLAYGROUND

NYC Parks Brooklyn Borough Commissioner Martin Maher yesterday joined City Council Member David Greenfield, students from multiple nearby schools, and community members of all ages to cut the ribbon on the third major phase of renovations to Seth Low Playground. Funded with $1.9 million by the Borough President and Council Member, this project includes new fields and adult fitness equipment.

“Seth Low Playground has been transformed from underused asphalt area into a beautiful park with amenities for all members of the surrounding community to enjoy,” said Commissioner Maher. “From the two new turf fields, to the adult fitness equipment, this final portion of Seth Low rounds out the park and significantly expands the usable space for the many children from the surrounding schools, our local seniors, and everyone in between. Parks is grateful to the contributions from the Council Member and the Borough President to complete this treasured shared space.”

"Seth Low Playground is centrally located near a library, senior centers, and several schools. It's on the edge of my district but I promised that I would renovate every single park in my district,” said Council Member Greenfield. “The reason I'm so committed to this is because everyone deserves a beautiful park for their quality of life, not just children but for everyone who lives in this community. That's why I'm renovating all 13 parks and playground in my district."

"Children and families in Bensonhurst are now able to enjoy an expanded and enhanced multi-faceted recreation space at Seth Low Playground,” said Borough President Adams. “I am proud that Brooklyn Borough Hall has allocated $1 million of capital funds, in partnership with Council Member Greenfield and NYC Parks, to turn this once-barren lot into a true community gem for all to enjoy."

The new turf soccer and multi-purpose fields allow for a variety of active and passive recreational activities and are surrounded by a four-foot wide rubber track path. The multi-purpose field is a perfect place for community movie nights and is accessible via a new ADA-compliant ramp.

Three-tier bleachers overlook the soccer field, providing an area for fans to cheer on players. Benches between the two fields were added, along with drinking fountains, shade tree canopy, and landscaping.

This playground honors Seth Low (1850-1916), former president of Columbia College (1890-1901) – now Columbia University - and mayor of New York (1901-1903). Bounded by Bay Parkway, Avenue P, and West 12th Street, Seth Low Playground is located in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn and is adjacent to the Seth Low Intermediate School. Bensonhurst was once a rural section of the Dutch colonial town of New Utrecht. In the 1880s, land developer James Lynch bought land from the Benson family, after whom the neighborhood is named, and converted it into an exclusive community which he named Bensonhurst-by-the-Sea. When the area was linked with Manhattan by the Fourth Avenue subway line in 1915, the population rapidly increased. Two- and three-family houses and apartment buildings were built during the 1920s for the growing population of Italians and Jews from the Lower East Side. Following World War II (1939-1945), Bensonhurst continued to grow. It was immortalized in “The Honeymooners,” a classic television show set in Bensonhurst that aired from 1952 to 1957.