cadman
What will they think of next? We received an email from the Cadman Park Community Council, the members of which are in quite a tizzy over the City’s plans to throw down 1.5 acres of artificial turf on the main lawn as part of an upcoming renovation. The bad guy in this drama, according to the CPCC, is Councilman David Yassky (who had a hand in sinking 184 Kent’s shot at landmarking). According to the CPCC literature, the Parks Department, under the stewardship of Yassky, is dropping about $3 million to renovate just a third of the park. The CPCC claims that thousands of area residents registered their disapproval in signed petitions last year but have been ignored. Is there another side to this story or will Yassky forever be known as the anti-grass candidate?
Cadman Plaza [NYC Parks & Rec] GMAP


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  1. There’s an article about the issue in today’s Brooklyn Eagle. It starts:

    ‘Cadman Plastic Park’: Rally
    Planned To Protest Artificial Turf
    by Mary Frost (mfrost@brooklyneagle.net), published online 04-06-2006

    CADMAN PLAZA — Banners of protest reading “Plastic Grass — Fuggedaboutit!” and “Honor Our Veterans” were hung last weekend on a chain-link barrier recently installed around heavily-used Cadman Plaza Park. In addition, the “Plaza” on the park’s identifying sign was taped over and replaced, to read “Cadman Plastic Park.”
    “The neighborhood continues to be upset about plastic grass,” said a spokesperson for the Cadman Park Community Council (CPCC), which is opposed to the replacement of the sparse grass in the main rectangular field — originally designed to honor veterans of World War II — with artificial turf.

  2. The small group of community activists that initiated the park improvement efforts (Ken Fisher (later Yassky), BHA, Golden (later Markowitz), Yassky, Kaplan Foundation, and CB2 ) all put in substantive time and money over the past 10 years pushing Parks. Turf opponents have come out largely in response to this single issue that was integrated into the older community plan by Parks’ in-house design team. It’s VERY easy to de-rail these types of projects, especially when the community-at-large seems to be fighting itself. Just the type of things our elected officials quickly back away from (along with the money). Our community should be cautious about how they fight these fights, especially when City money is tight. The Parks Dept is NOT the most highly funded city agency, after all.

  3. I think this is just another example of how downtown brooklyn gets short-changed. If this were Manhattan, they would add drainage, sod it and rope it off for the summer like they did in Central Park which is used all the time and is no worse for the wear. Designate one part of this area for sports. Not the entire thing. This area is NOT a baseball field down by the BQE. It’s downtown Brooklyn’s only park and it should look like that.

  4. I think this stuff is perfect for a baseball field and the Parade Grounds. Less perfect for this site. A field of it, fine. But that space has nice light. Grass would grow and did grow for a long time there, until it became St Anns playground.

  5. Maybe I’m wrong but last I heard, new drainage, sod and approriate sprinkler/water was considerably more than the turf AND the maintainace exponentially higher; all the while it will still turn to dirt if it gets anywhere near the use (soccer etc..) it is getting now. But even if the cost for grass is less, are people really suggesting banning soccer, frisbee etc… in order to preserve a lawn? – EVERYONE would prefer real grass but the question is, is it practical for the uses that the park will endure.
    BTW – Turf drains through (ie it is not like concrete), although yes it doesnt produce oxygen. As for the color and heat – please go see the field at Columbia and Atlantic before making such comments, this is not 1960’s Astroturf…it looks like real grass (all year) unless you are virtually standing on it, it is soft and it doesnt reflect heat anymore than a regulat carpet would (ie more than real grass but considerably less than concrete or asphalt)

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