By Gus Saltonstall
A popular park in Morningside Heights, best known for its cherry blossom trees, is closed for multiple months for repaving work during the height of the cherry blossom bloom.
Sakura Park, located near West 122nd Street between Riverside Drive and Claremont Avenue, is closed to the public from mid-March through mid-May, in order for the pathways within the green space to be repaved, according to a spokesperson from the New York City Parks Department.
“Sakura Park is one of our most cherished green spaces, especially now during cherry blossom season, and we’re committed to strengthening our city’s living infrastructure,” Manhattan Borough Commissioner Tricia Shimamura told West Side Rag, after we reached out to the Parks Department about the closure. “This project will make the park’s pathways safer, more accessible, and more enjoyable year-round.”
The timing of the closure seems peculiar as the peak bloom of cherry blossoms takes place from late March through mid-April.
Parks Department did not immediately respond to our question of whether the timing of the cherry blossom bloom had been factored into to the decision to close the park for construction work during this March to May period.
Sakura is the Japanese word for cherry blossom.
In 1912, Japan gifted dozens of Yoshino cherry trees to the city to be planted in the Morningside Heights park, many of which are still standing there today.
The gesture subsequently inspired the city to name the green space, Sakura Park.
On the New York City Parks Department’s official website, Sakura Park is the agency’s first recommendation under the “best parks to see cherry blossoms in New York City.”
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How about closing the “lawns” of Strawberry Fields in CP? Walked by today, they’re still just packed earth. They used to be closed for the winter, and the soil was aerated by one guy from the CPC, he seems to have retired.
I know it’s a popular tourist spot, but the “lawns” look atrocious in Strawberry Fields, much worse than rest of Central Park. Packed earth makes for unhealthy trees, which can then uproot if there’s a significant wind storm.
Always liked Sakura Park, but haven’t been there in years. Not my neighborhood.
Does anyone actually think this government is capable of that kind of forethought and communication?
The Parks Department lives on another continent, perhaps another planet, making decisions without regard to the present season or floral displays in its vast realms. I go to Sakura Park often and its lanes are not notably damaged. The work could have waited until the summer or fall, if they cared even a little about the local population.
This reminds me of the famous Milton Friedman quote: “if the US government were in charge of the Sahara Desert, within ten years it would be out of sand.”
Alexis: “David, how long are you going to be doing this?” Me: Parks, how long are you going to be doing this?
I am almost serious in thinking that DJT would get the work done much faster. Aargh.
He would destroy it altogether.
Please next fix the docks on the West Harlem Piers Park. They have all been destroyed in storms and have never been replaced.