By Scott Etkin
Riverside Park is one step closer to having a renovated River Run Playground, located in the park near West 82nd Street, with its namesake river intact.
On Monday afternoon, the city’s Public Design Commission (PDC) unanimously gave preliminary approval for the $9.8 million project, which upgrades the playground’s infrastructure, play equipment, and accessibility, without changing many of the elements that make it unique.
Last summer, Upper West Siders pushed back against the NYC Parks Department’s initial plans to remove the distinctive river – or “runnel,” in the park’s terminology – that’s in the center of the playground.
“We reached out to the community to get extensive feedback from the local community, from [Community Board 7], and from Riverside Park Conservancy, to look at reincorporating these wonderful…playful features that were very much a component of the original 1990s design,” said Margaret Bracken, project manager for NYC Parks, during this week’s PDC meeting.
Other notable elements of the playground will be preserved, including the Robert Moses-era decorative steel gate at the entrance and the sculptural sandbox by local artist Gerry Lynas. Lynas is not involved in the renovation, but he spoke as a member of the public during the meeting.
“I want to commend the group for what appears to be a very sensitive renovation of a beautiful playground where all of my children grew up and where I’ve gone many, many times to enjoy watching children playing in my sculpture,” Lynas said.
Lynas’ only question was about the addition of a small footbridge for children over the runnel, which he thought was unnecessary and might block toys floating in the water, leading to an overflow. The project’s architect said the elevation of the bridge wasn’t determined and is something that would be looked into.
River Run Playground, located between West 81st and 83rd streets, dates back to the 1930s and was last renovated in 1999. Its aging infrastructure has led to flooding from drainage problems. There are also tripping hazards where the roots of mature trees have lifted up the pavement.
The new designs aim to mitigate flooding by increasing the permeability of the playground’s ground surfaces from 2.5% to 17.3%. The renovation will also improve drainage under the sandbox, which currently does not have an underdrain.
In response to input from the community, the designs call for two picnic areas, as well as an emphasis on climbing structures in the new play equipment. In a reversal from the original plans, the renovated playground will have two seesaws – updated models that are considered safer than River Run’s current ones.
The playground’s bathrooms are not part of the scope of work for the renovation, though the entrance to the bathroom building will be brought into compliance with ADA accessibility standards.
In addition to PDC’s approval, the preliminary designs have already received approval from the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission. The project is still in the design phase, meaning it is still likely more than a year away from breaking ground.
Read more: UWS River Run Playground May Keep Its River After All
Subscribe to West Side Rag’s FREE email newsletter here. And you can Support the Rag here.
Great progress on the design, it is exciting! It’s great to hear such good listening to the feedback on the initial design.
But also such a disappointment at 10 million doesn’t even get new bathrooms for the space.