“It’s My Park Day” is coming to Sara D. Roosevelt Park on Saturday (June 23). As local activists continue to plead with the Parks Department to finally reopen the Stanton Street community building to the community, they’re planning a full day of creative activities and presentations.
Here’s more from Fourth Arts Block/Downtown Art:
The festivities are intended to draw attention, once again, to the need to re-open the Stanton park building, currently boarded up and used for storage, to community use. The park is seeing an escalation of troubling uses including drug use and trafficking, the children’s playground is avoided by local families, and the closed building sits at the center of this activity. Re-opening the building for programming could have a significant impact in making the park safe and welcoming to all. Special speakers include Council member Margaret Chin, Borough President Gale Brewer, Community Board 3 Chair Alysha Lewis-Coleman, and local tenant leaders. There will be a bike helmet giveaway, creative arts activities good for all ages, dance and performance, a bike repair workshop, and information from multiple community groups. Partners organizing the event include Fourth Arts Block (FAB), University Settlement, Green Map Systems, Sara D. Roosevelt Park Coalition, and the Office of Councilwoman Margaret Chin.
The daytime activities take place between 2-5 p.m. (speech making happens at 2:30). There will be projections from Chinatown Art Brigade starting at 8:45 p.m. Participants will be gathering in the park, at Stanton Street, between Forsyth and Chrystie streets.
