McCarren Park (NYC Parks)
Feb. 20, 2018 By Nathaly Pesantez
McCarren Park is set to see several additions beginning in the summer, starting with barbecue grills, picnic tables, and, possibly, a food facility.
Nine double-headed grills will be installed through three sections of the park by May, according to Mary Salig, North Brooklyn Parks Administrator for NYC Parks, who spoke at last week’s Community Board 1 meeting.
The grills will be installed near the Vincent Abate playground by Lorimer Street and Driggs Avenue, by the bocce courts on Union Avenue, and just outside the perimeter of the park’s baseball field along Driggs Avenue.
Schematic showing McCarren Park’s upcoming designated barbecue areas . (NYC Parks)
The grills will also be accompanied by 18 picnic tables through the designated barbecuing areas, and with one charcoal bin in each zone.
Salig said the initiative is completely new to the park, adding that many park-goers already barbecue at the park for birthdays and other events.
The project is part of a zone management plan that will also bring new garbage-collecting methods to the park. The garbage trucks that currently roam within the park, for example, will no longer have to do so under the new plan.
“McCarren Park is a heavily-used resource for many North Brooklynites,” said NYC Parks Brooklyn Commissioner Martin Maher in a statement. “We’re excited to bring even more amenities to the park and we know these grills and picnic tables will be put to good use.”
Meanwhile, the Parks department also has plans to bring a food service facility to the park.
A spokesperson for the agency said they plan on issuing a request for proposals this spring for the development, operation, and maintenance of a food service facility at the McCarren Park field house.
The RFP will also include the option to operate two mobile food units at the park.
The RFP itself is not yet available, according to the Parks department spokesperson, as the agency will request to meet with Community Board 1 before issuing it.
The changes to McCarren Park come as the agency announced the track and field will close in March for a year’s worth of renovation work.
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3 Comments
So does this mean we can’t bring our own BBQ grills anymore?
Don’t we have enough restaurants and coffee places around the park and our community? Why do not leave the parks only for nature and as it was? Just improve what’s necessary.
Don’t do a food court’s in NYC parks, please. Add more toilet facilities and improve old ones.
There better be a fee to use the barbecues or you will see battles erupt over the use of them. The parks on LI issue a permit to use BBQ areas.