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FLUSHING Meadows- Corona Park has come a long way from its days as an ash disposal heap in the early 20th century.
As the home to the Mets, world-class tennis, Queens Theater in the Park and varied wildlife, the park - centrally located in northern Queens and dividing the communities of Flushing and Corona - has become a place where sports, culture and community converge.
At 1,255 sprawling acres flanked by the Grand Central Parkway and the Van Wyck Expressway, the former site of the 1939 and 1964 New York World's Fairs is New York City's third-largest park - trailing Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx and Greenbelt Park in Staten Island, according to the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
But, after years of alternating between being neglected and renovated, the park is poised for new growth. Among the ambitious capital improvements planned are a pool and a new ice rink, upgraded ballfields, and expansions to the Queens Museum of Art, the Queens Botanical Garden and the New York Hall of Science.
Pool-Rink Complex
Spearheading the revitalization of the park is the $32.9 million capital improvement project that will give Queens residents a year- round, Olympic-caliber indoor pool and an upgraded indoor ice rink for recreational and competitive use. Funding for the project was secured through the mayor's office, the Queens borough president and the City Council.
"Claire Shulman [who left office as Queens borough president on Dec. 31] was a major proponent of Flushing Meadows- Corona Park. She loved this park. These improvements are almost a personal favor to her," former city parks commissioner Henry Stern said before he left office in late January. (Newly appointed commissioner Adrian Benepe did not respond to repeated requests for comment on the park.)
Early phases of construction on the multistory 69,000-square-foot facility that will house the pool and ice rink started in April. Parks officials say a contractor for the actual building construction should be in place by this spring. No completion date has been given, due to the complex nature of the construction.
The new pool will be a 10-lane, Olympic- size pool that meets competitive regulations, according to parks officials. Sections of the pool will feature movable floors to allow swimmers...