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The majestic fountains that captivated millions of visitors to the 1964 World's Fair at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park soon will spout again for the first time in more than 25 years.
About $1 million in new flowers, shrubs and trees are being planted in the park, and workers are getting set for a series of projects, including the $10-million reconstruction of the Flushing Bay promenade.
In the midst of dilapidated park structures and a ravaging recession, a renaissance is taking shape at the 1,255-acre Flushing Meadows-Corona Park - home to Shea Stadium, the U.S. Open tennis tournament and the 1939 and 1964 World's Fairs.
After years of park pipedreams, development is finally becoming a reality with millions of dollars secured from various sources. The park's 8 million annual visitors will, in a few years or less, be able to enjoy new pedestrian paths, entrances, and gardens in addition to a number of newly restored structures, including the Unisphere, the park's most famous landmark.
Contributing to the park's air of resurgence are renovations at a number of independent institutions within the park, including Shea Stadium, which in 1987 received a new facade and the distinctive neon figures of ballplayers; extensive renovations now under way at the Queens Museum and the 500-seat Queens Theater-in-the-Park, projected to cost $12 million and $3 million, respectively, and a $10-million expansion at the New York Hall of Science, scheduled to break ground July 1.
Also, the $16-million renovation of the Queens Zoo will be unveiled to the public when it reopens for the first time since 1988 at the end of next month. While the renovation was completed last year, until now, there has not been money to staff it.
"We had to start over," said Arne Abramowitz, the park administrator of the restoration project that for years had been put on hold, leaving much of the park underdeveloped and in disrepair.
The irony of Flushing Meadows' rebirth coinciding with a deficit that this year forced the city's Park's Department to slash its budget 33 percent is not lost on Abramowitz.
But he makes no apologies for the park's good fortune, which he said is long overdue.
"It was our time and we weren't going to miss it," he said.
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