Sunset Park playground set for overhaul starting April

The Sunset Park Playground will finally receive its long-awaited reconstruction this spring.

According to the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, the eagerly-anticipated project — which is scheduled to begin on April 4 and take a year to complete — will include new play equipment, swings, a spray shower, a new safety surface, fencing, landscaping and benches.

“We are so pleased to be able to give Sunset Park Playground the upgrade it deserves,” said New York City Parks Brooklyn Borough Commissioner Kevin Jeffrey. “With generous funding from the mayor’s office and Councilmember Carlos Menchaca, we will begin a complete reconstruction of the space this spring. Once completed, the community will be able to enjoy this playground for years to come.”

According to the Parks Department, over $3 million will be funded for the upgrades at the park’s playground at 44th Street and Sixth Avenue, including $820,000 from Mayor Bill de Blasio and $2.4 million from the City Council.

In addition to playground upgrades, $500,000 has been allocated by Borough President Eric Adams towards a project for the area’s green space, “a separate capital project within Sunset Park which will add fences, benches and pathways,” according to Parks spokesperson Maeri Ferguson, who told this paper that the project is currently in the design phase.

The board also addressed an upgrade in the park’s fencing. The project, added Jeremy Laufer, district manager of Community Board 7, during the board’s March 16 meeting, “will remove the ugly chain link fence along Fifth Avenue and replace it with steel fencing.”

Parents in the neighborhood hope that the finished product will caters to all Sunset kids.

“I just hope that their floor plan is for kids of all ages from tots to tweens and that they do not take out the swings as it’s for all ages and even adults like myself, but I would like to know what it can look like before it’s done,” said P.S. 169 PTA President Mimi Ferrer.

Kids will not be left high and dry while the playground is under construction, according to CB 7 Parks Chairperson Victor Swinton , who told board members, “The Parks Department has promised there will be additional activity and staff in the park during this construction.”

There’s also the possibility of a playground in a box, to provide some options while the main playground is out of commission, but CB 7 is still waiting to hear whether it’s a go. “They have told us they will get back to us on that,” Swinton said, adding, “There were also discussions of signs being put up in different languages, explaining that there’s going to be construction done to the playground.”

The sprinklers also will remain in operation during the summer season, from Memorial Day through Labor Day.

The board voted on and approved the upgrades to fences, benches and a new path. Deltec is the contractor selected for the reconstruction.