Press Releases

NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue joined Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, City Councilmember Pierina Sanchez, Community Board 5 Chair Angel Caballero, and community members today to celebrate the opening of Davidson Park in the Morris Heights section of the Bronx. The new, 11,250-square-foot park offers a safe and attractive destination for local children to play.

The park was constructed through $9.79 million in funding from the NYC Mayor’s Office.

“Davidson Park is a significant addition to the West Bronx, making the area more green and vibrant while offering children a safe and inviting place to have fun, be active, or cool off on hot summer days. What was once an abandoned space will now serve as both an oasis and a destination for families in this community,” said NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue. “Parks are vital — they make our city more livable, and our aim is to create clean and safe public spaces that provide young people with accessible outlets for recreation, offer neighbors a place to connect and build community, and allow New Yorkers to experience all the health benefits of green outdoor spaces. We continue to improve our park amenities in the outer boroughs and are grateful to the Mayor’s Office for its generous support of this project.”

Davidson Park features play equipment connected by accessible ramps, as well as spray showers, swings, benches, and trees to provide shade. The spray shower contains features of different intensity and height for various comfort and ability levels. An existing natural stone wall and rock outcrops were preserved to provide a unique and striking backdrop to the park.

Planting areas throughout the site contain trees that will cast shade and absorb storm water runoff. Other sustainability measures in the site design include the use of recycled materials, including recycled plastic lumber seats for the park benches.

“As the greenest borough in the city, we are excited about the addition of Davidson Park to our West Bronx community,” said Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson. “With accessible ramps, spray showers, swings, benches, and other play equipment, there is something for everyone to enjoy. I want to thank NYC Parks, the NYC Mayor`s Office, Community Board 5, Parks advocates, and everyone else who played a vital role in bringing this project to fruition.”

"It is an exciting day for our West Bronx neighborhood with the opening of Davidson Park. This park will benefit countless children and their families by providing a great recreational space to enjoy and connect with each other," said State Senator Gustavo Rivera. "This gives our community a free space to play and stay healthy this summer. I applaud the significant investment by the City and the commitment of NYC Parks to complete this beautiful project and expand access to green spaces for the Bronx."

This major expansion of greenspace access in the West Bronx comes as Parks launches the Vital Parks initiative, a new framework for investing in and caring for New York City’s greenspace network. The new initiative includes an initial investment of $3.2 billion toward upgrading the city’s living infrastructure, as well as the launch of a new interactive data tool that Parks hopes will empower New Yorkers to engage with and advocate for their local parks.