Ten parks across New York City will receive $50 million in new investments, Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced Thursday. The parks, spread across every borough, are located in neighborhoods with the greatest need and have not seen significant upgrades in more than two decades. While the improvements are expected to benefit more than 116,500 New Yorkers, advocates have criticized Mamdani’s 2027 preliminary budget, which does not include the 1 percent of the budget for Parks Department funding that he pledged during his campaign.
“For many New Yorkers, the park is their backyard—a place where they can play a game of pick-up basketball, hold a picnic on the grass or kick a ball with their kids,” Mamdani said. “These New Yorkers know the difference between a park in disarray and a park that city government has invested in.”
“That is why, today, we are proud to announce $50 million worth of capital investments to ten parks across the city—investments that will allow more than 100,000 New Yorkers in all five boroughs to experience a healthier, cleaner and more accessible city,” he added.
The capital investments will be made through the Parks Department’s Community Parks Initiative (CPI) for fiscal year 2027, which focuses on reconstructing parks in historically underserved neighborhoods.
Through CPI, park reconstructions follow a community-driven design process that improves green spaces, upgrades sites, and adds new play equipment and recreational amenities for visitors of all ages.
Over the past decade, NYC Parks has completed 70 CPI projects citywide and currently has 47 under construction. The 10 new projects bring the total number of active CPI initiatives to 57.
The following 10 parks are slated for transformation:
Bronx:
- Mott Playground (Concourse)
- Fountain of Youth Playground (Mott Haven / Longwood)
- Morris Mesa Playground (Mount Hope)
Brooklyn:
- Van Dyke Playground (Brownsville)
- Roebling Playground (South Williamsburg)
- Elizabeth Stroud Playground (Bedford–Stuyvesant)
Manhattan:
- Vladeck Park (Lower East Side)
- St. Nicholas Park 133rd St. Playground (Harlem)
Queens:
- Corona Health Sanctuary (Corona)
Staten Island:
- Kaltenmeier Playground (Rosebank / Shore Acres)
While the investments will improve park access for scores of New Yorkers, Mayor Mamdani’s recently announced $127 billion budget proposal has drawn criticism from park advocates. On the campaign trail, Mamdani pledged to allocate one percent of the city budget to parks. However, the budget allocates only about half a percent, according to amNY.
In a statement last month, Play Fair for Parks Coalition co-chairs—Adam Ganser, executive director of New Yorkers for Parks, and Julie Tighe, president of the New York League of Conservation Voters—criticized the mayor’s preliminary budget.
“This is not the strong first step needed to move Parks funding to one percent of the total city budget, which the mayor committed to and which is key to a livable and affordable New York City,” they said. “Instead, it maintains the status quo of historic underfunding, leaving communities without the safe, accessible green spaces they deserve.”
A Mamdani administration spokesperson told amNY that the mayor “remains committed” to reaching one percent of the city budget for parks by the end of his term, while renewing calls to raise taxes on wealthy New Yorkers to fund investments in the public realm.
“While working families are asked to tighten their belts, the wealthiest New Yorkers and the largest corporations continue to reap extraordinary gains,” the spokesperson said.
“Mayor Mamdani believes we must tax the wealthiest among us, ensure corporations pay their fair share, and end the drain on our city’s resources, so we can invest in the services that make New York livable for everyone.”
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