A few years ago, a possibly British person posted on a Yelp review of Rainey Park, “Not a bad place to have a stroll on a nice day when you are in the neighbourhood. But not special enough for a special trip.”
A video artist remarked on the place, “Meh.”
The place is mainly a big field, with a battered fence, not-so-frequently mowed grass, a Noguchi-style playground, a not-so-used baseball diamond, a basic basketball court, and trees that aren’t ideally placed near the benches on sunny days. Nevertheless a lot of people, including me, spend parts of our life at Rainey Park. Some barbecue, some picnic, some exercise, some fly drones, some role down the Noguchi hill thing, some stand at the water’s edge fence and meditate on the view, I sit on the bench squinting and sometimes sweating while reading.
Now, a whopping $7.5 million is being invested in Rainey. City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer allocated $3.7 million from the 2020 budget, on top of $3 million already secured (or the other way around, I don’t know, I’m confused). Borough President Melinda Katz is also bringing in $800,000. That should add up to $7.5 million.
If this will be anything compared to the $4.5 million renovation at Dutch Kills Playground, it should be noticeable. Let’s see if they address the tree configuration or the Costco shopping carts half in the water below the fence.
cornerofastoria.wordpress.com 
One thought on “$7.5 mil goes to Rainy Park”