You are reading

Western Queens gets two new parks, including one for dogs 

The L/CPL Thomas P. Noonan Jr. Playground Dog Run and seating area is a long-awaited welcome to the Woodside community. Photo by Emil Cohen/NYC Council Media Unit

Aug. 21, 2024 By Iryna Shkurhan

On Monday, Aug. 19, Council Member Julie Won and officials from NYC Parks cut the ribbon on two new parks in Woodside and Maspeth just an hour apart. 

The recently completed L/CPL Thomas P. Noonan Playground Dog Run, at 42nd Street and Greenpoint Avenue in Woodside, was one that local residents had been pushing for since before Won took office in 2022. 

Members of the Friends of Noonan Park Dog Run asked former City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer to build the space out of a need for more dog-friendly recreational spots in the area. He was able to secure $2.5 million in Mayoral funding to complete this project. 

When Won took over the district, she took the project to completion and fulfilled the community’s expectations in coordination with NYC Parks. 

Officials gathered to deliver remarks and cut the ribbon on Monday. Photo by Emil Cohen/NYC Council Media Unit

Noonan Playground Dog Run now includes a new dog run, a seating area with new plantings, benches and lighting. There is also a water filling station, doggie bag dispenser and a tall fence to prevent dogs from escaping. 

“Friends of Noonan Park Dog Run would like to express our immense appreciation to Council Member Julie Won and former Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer for giving us Noonan Park Dog Run. Parks did a fantastic job; everyone who sees it says what a beautiful dog run it is,” said Christine Coulombe, President of Friends of Noonan Park Dog Run. 

Coulombe also recounted that one woman at the dog run told her that even on the days she doesn’t plan to go to the dog run, her dog ends up dragging her every day. “The dogs LOVE Noonan Park Dog Run, as do we.”

Just over a mile away, officials unveiled western Maspeth’s first park. It is located right next to the Kosciuszko Bridge at 43rd Street and 54th Road at the border of Sunnyside. The park was previously used as a staging area during construction of the bridge, and opened to the public in Oct. 2023. 

Maspeth Park is the first park to open in western Maspeth and features several recreational sections. Photo courtesy of Julie Won’s office

The new amenities for local residents include picnic tables, game tables, a basketball court, adult fitness equipment and a skate park. A new sidewalk outside the park leading to the Kosciuszko Bridge’s bicycle and pedestrian path was also part of the project. 

“The new Noonan Playground Dog Run and Maspeth Park give our neighbors access to safe, beautiful and local outdoor spaces. I’m thrilled to celebrate the opening of these long-awaited parks, which would not be possible without our combined advocacy with the community,” said Council Member Julie Won. “Parks and green spaces are crucial for our neighbors’ health, vitality and happiness.”

The two long-awaited projects cost a combined total of $20.3 million. The Noonan Playground was funded with $2.5 million from the Mayor’s office. Maspeth Park was allocated $17.8 million from the New York State Department of Transportation. 

“Attractive, modern parks are crucial for enhancing the livability of New York City’s communities, as they provide vibrant and accessible spaces,” said Queens Borough Parks Commissioner Jacqueline Langsam, who attended the ribbon cuttings.

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Gunman wanted after nightclub shooting during early morning dispute at Jamaica hotel: NYPD

Police from the 103rd Precinct are looking for a gunman who opened fire inside a banquet hall in a hotel in Jamaica during the early morning hours of Sunday, March 16.

The suspect was involved in a dispute with an unidentified man inside a nightclub that operates inside the Hotel Liberty Inn & Suites-JFK at 144-20 Liberty Ave. just before 5 a.m. when he pulled out a firearm and discharged it multiple times, causing damage to the ceiling, police said. An NYPD spokesman could not say what the two men were arguing about before the gunfire erupted. No injuries were reported as a result of the shooting.

Flushing man arrested for impersonating ICE agent in visa fraud scheme: Feds

An alleged Flushing con artist was arrested by FBI agents in Brooklyn Friday morning after a federal grand jury indicted him for perpetrating a visa fraud scheme by pretending to be an ICE agent.

Tommy Aijie Da Silva Weng, 49, was arraigned in Brooklyn federal court on Friday afternoon on an indictment charging him with wire fraud, mail fraud, and impersonating a federal law enforcement agent in connection to a scam to defraud an unidentified Chinese citizen who resides in the United States by claiming he could help her in obtaining a green card through an EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa Program if she invested $500,000 with him for a project to build hotels in California.