St. John's Park

Parks Cuts The Ribbon And Unveils Mural At St. John’s Playground

Tuesday, April 28, 2009
No. 36
http://www.nyc.gov/parks

Commissioner Adrian Benepe today joined City Council Member Albert Vann, Executive and Artistic Director of CITYarts Inc. Tsipi Ben-Haim, Brazilian artist Duda Penteado, Community Board 8 Chair Robert Matthews, and children from P.S. 92 and P.S. 243 to cut the ribbon on over $4.3 million in renovations and to unveil the beautiful mural, Nature is Love on Earth, at St. John’s Playground in Brooklyn.

“St. John’s Playground has been transformed into a state-of-the-art recreational destination in central Brooklyn with over $4.3 million in improvements,” said Commissioner Benepe. “Thanks to the vision of Council Member Vann, the community benefits from a new playground with a basketball and handball complex. Under Mayor Bloomberg’s PlaNYC, we will soon convert its asphalt yard into a vibrant turf field. And all visitors to the park can enjoy the beautiful mural, Nature is Love on Earth, created through a collaboration between Parks and CITYarts, that celebrates nature while raising awareness of global warming.”

Thanks to allocations of $2,340,000 from Council Member Vann and $342,000 from Mayor Bloomberg, Parks transformed the St. John’s basketball courts into a state-of-the-art outdoor athletic venue, featuring six new basketball courts and 12 handball courts with recreational lighting.

Thanks to an additional $1,291,000 from Council Member Vann, $100,000 from Mayor Bloomberg, and $250,000 from a State EPF Grant, Parks reconstructed the playground with new play equipment, a spray shower, swings, a grassy hill, benches, fencing and landscaping. Additionally, as part of PlaNYC’s ‘asphalt to turf’ initiative, Parks will soon convert the park’s asphalt yard into a multi-purpose synthetic turf field for soccer, football and baseball, with $3.3 million in Mayoral funds.

After cutting the ribbon, Parks unveiled the beautiful community mural, Nature is Love on Earth,
created through a partnership between CITYarts and Parks. The mural was coordinated by artist
Duda Penteado and designed and painted by young people from the St. John’s Recreation Center
and the surrounding community. It is the 272nd public art project coordinated by CITYarts.