![]() “Providing a specific number of parking spaces is part of the license agreement,” Parks Department sources said. Negotiations to reduce the number of spaces needed for USTA parking during the US Open are tempered by a license agreement between the city and the US Tennis Association. ![]() I would like to see them make us move.”Ī Parks Department spokesperson said the agency has been working with the Mets organization and with USTA officials to reduce the number of days that baseball games overlap with other events necessitating the use of grassland for parking. “I would like to see the Parks Department kick the public out of the area to provide parking spaces for tennis fans. Oats said they might call on the public to join them and set up picnics on the designated fields the weekend of September 7-9. Oats said he and members of his organization are considering actions to bring their message to the public – and to force Parks Department officials to reverse their flipflop. But they have allowed vehicles to park there over the past five years,” he said. Maybe they didn’t allow parking near Meadow Lake last year. “It’s not like they’ve never done it before. Oats told the Gazette that parking near Meadow Lake is nothing new. Vehicles would only be parked on designated sites near Meadow Lake. When Oats expressed his anger at the decision, a Parks Department spokesperson reassured him that no parking would be allowed on sites included in his July 11 presentation. The Flushing activist said he became furious when a Parks Department spokesperson announced on August 13 thatĪreas in Flushing Meadows, “…south of the Long Island Expressway near Meadow Lake will be used for last resort parking,” when all existing asphalt parking lots in Flushing Meadows are filled. “Finally, the grass will grow back,” said Oats. Oats said the announcement by Parks Department officials to ban grassland parking was like a weight being lifted from the overburdened infrastructure at the park. While announcing the decision Gilbert posted a phone number for people to call, 718- 699-4245, to report sightings of vehicles parked on grasslands during special events at Flushing Meadows. The display included photos of vehicles parked on grassland near the New York State Pavilion and at other locations throughout the park, which destroyed grass and foliage.įollowing the meeting, William Gilbert, parks and recreation manager at FMCP said the conditions outlined by Oats had been addressed and that all vehicles would be parked on asphalt during the 2007 US Open. At the meeting, Oats presented a photo display documenting abuses heaped on the parkland by city officials who have allowed parking there during the US Open and other special events. Oats pled members of the Community Board 7 Parks Committee on July 11 for help to prevent parking on grasslands during the annual tennis tourney. “They lied to all of us and my anger is growing with each day that passes.” The Parks Department made a promise that there would be no parking on grassland at Flushing Meadows- Corona Park during this year’s US Open. ![]() Oats is railing at Parks Department officials who admitted recently that they will probably allow fans to park on grasslands at the Queens park on a weekend when the Mets play a home game during the US Open tennis tournament. Through generous funding from the Recreational Trails Program grant, GreenerNYC, and Con-Ed, various volunteer groups installed paving stones and wooden puncheons for travel through the wetland areas on the west side of the lake near the Grand Central Parkway.Grassland being used as a parking lot at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.ĭavid Oats, Queens activist and President of the Flushing Meadows- Corona Park World’s Fair Association, is not a happy man. The main trail runs along the south side of the lake and over a wooden bridge. Hikers can access a short trail leading north to a bird blind and scenic viewpoint of the lake. This project removed invasive plants and planted native species. Near the Van Wyck Expressway, the trail passes through an extensive habitat restoration project that was completed in 2018 by the Forestry, Horticulture & Natural Resources division of NYC Parks. Hikers can access the trail from the east at the Van Wyck Expressway overpass at Mauro Playground (73rd Terrace and Park Drive East) and from the west at 72nd Road and the Grand Central Parkway Service Road. Dolan is remembered as a dedicated park advocate who frequented the trail, which crosses the Willow Lake Forever Wild Preserve. The Pat Dolan Trail was named after founder and first president of the Flushing Meadows-Corona Park Conservancy.
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