Van Cortlandt Park reaches halfway point in 20-year master plan with major upgrades

A 2014 master plan set goals for the park over the next 20 years. As the first 10 years draw to a close, Community Board 8 looks for a progress report.

File photo

Van Cortlandt Park has reached the 10-year mark of its 20-year master plan. 

At last month’s Community Board 8 parks and recreation committee meeting, member Bob Bender was particularly interested in learning from the Van Cortlandt Park Alliance how it’s faired in completing the goals laid out in the park’s master plan, and what the halfway mark looks like as the next 10 years lay ahead. 

While alliance officials said they would have an official report ready for the board in January, a close look at the plan, drafted in 2014, and the projects within give a glimpse to what’s in store after the alliance’s report. 

The parks department said, since the announcement of the plan, a number of Van Cortlandt Park projects have advanced or been completed that have helped improve overall recreational amenities and infrastructure. The department provided a list of eight highlighted projects. 

In 2018, the park celebrated the opening of the Woodlawn dog run by Van Cortlandt Park East and Oneida Avenue. While the dog run was not new, the project made the animal-friendly space larger and included advancement to add greenery, benches, a waste bag dispenser and a waste basket. Providing a designated area, with plenty of space, for dogs also encourages pet-owners to let their dogs run safely in an enclosed space rather than throughout the rest of the park, where dangerous encounters can occur.

The advancement to the dog run came from capital money, which also allowed other improvements to be made to the end of the John Muir Hiking Trail, which begins alongside the new space. 

The year 2020, saw the completion of three projects: the Northwest Playground, the Van Cortlandt Skate Park and a portion of the Putnam Greenway. 

The playground was a $3 million project that stands today between Mosholu Avenue and Broadway, by the site of the old Van Cortlandt Motel. The space was built with inclusivity in mind, incorporating sensory-friendly play into the space to encourage all children to play using auditory, tactile and visual elements like accessible swings, ramps, ground-level features and accessible drinking fountains to make play fun for all. 

The skate park began construction in June of 2019 and finished in exactly one year, totaling just over $1 million in funding from the City Council and the mayor’s office. The brand-new park includes a variety of skating obstacles, like a wedge and a gap, a quarter pipe, stairs and a handrail.

The park, located between Broadway and Van Cortlandt Park South included a fence, gates, benches and water fountains. 

The work performed on a section of the Putnam Greenway was completed to maintain the 40-mile stretch that was once home to the New York Central Railroad. Today, the greenway provides passage to pedestrians, bikers, skaters, wheelchairs and joggers from the Bronx to Westchester.

The project totaled $4.25 million and successfully connected the path to the South County Trail System. Construction to the trailway increased accessibility and addressed ecological concerns like trail erosion and the reduction of pooling on the trail.

The process also included planting more than 400 native trees and saplings, as well as removing invasive plant species.

Woodlawn Playground, located near Van Cortlandt Park East and East 239th Street, had its spray shower reconstructed in 2022. The park has had its fair share of construction, originally erected in 1953 and redone in 1995 to provide accessible play for children of different abilities. Reconstruction of the playground spray showers was completed in September just in time for children to indulge in the cold spray on a hot summer’s day. In-ground and above-ground water jets were installed alongside permeable pavement in an attempt to alleviate flooding. 

Another large project, started and completed in the park in the last 10 years was the reconstruction of the Allen Shandler Recreation Area paths to improve sidewalks and trails while providing accessibility and forest restoration. 

The last completed project on the list was finished in June, which concluded the construction of the adult fitness equipment at the Classic Playground in the park.

The eighth project the parks department wanted to highlight, the reconstruction of the Van Cortlandt Park Greenhouse, is ongoing with a current completion date of January 2025.