Predecessor | Central Park Task Force, Central Park Community Fund |
---|---|
Founded | 1980 |
Founders | Elizabeth Barlow Rogers, William Sperry Beinecke, Ed Koch, Gordon Davis, Andrew Stein ( ex officio ) |
13-3022855 | |
Location |
|
Coordinates | 40°46′56″N73°57′55″W / 40.78222°N 73.96528°W |
Area served | Central Park |
Key people | Elizabeth W. Smith (President & CEO) |
Website | centralparknyc |
The Central Park Conservancy is an American private, nonprofit park conservancy that manages New York City's Central Park under a contract with the government of New York City and NYC Parks. The conservancy employs most maintenance and operations staff in the park. It effectively oversees the work of both the private and public employees under the authority of the publicly appointed Central Park administrator, who reports to the parks commissioner and the conservancy's president. [1]
The Central Park Conservancy was founded in 1980 in the aftermath of Central Park's decline in the 1960s and 1970s. [2] Initially devoted to fundraising for projects to restore and improve the park, it took over the park's management duties in 1998. [3] The organization has overseen the investment of more than $1 billion toward the restoration and enhancement of Central Park since its founding. [4] With an endowment of over $200 million, consisting of contributions from residents, corporations, and foundations, [5] the Conservancy raises the Park’s nearly $74 million annual operating budget [6] and is responsible for all basic care of the park. [7] The Conservancy also provides maintenance support and staff training programs for other public parks in New York City, and has assisted with the development of new parks, such as the High Line and Brooklyn Bridge Park. [8] : 45–46
The Conservancy was born out of community concern during the park's rapid decline in the 1960s and 1970s. The 1975 New York City fiscal crisis left Central Park a virtually abandoned dustbowl that residents came to view as a dangerous, crime-ridden space. [9] [10] Many advocacy groups had been working separately to improve conditions in Central Park. This included the Central Park Task Force, formed in 1975 and led by Elizabeth Barlow Rogers, an urban planner, writer and civic activist. [11]
In late 1974, Columbia University Professor E.S. Savas published a report, which concluded that the park needed one unpaid individual employed by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) to oversee its daily operations. It also recommended the establishment of a private, citizen-based board that would advise the overseeing individuals, as well as the creation of the Central Park Community Fund. [12] [13] [14] [15] The Fund was subsequently founded by Richard Gilder and George Soros. [9] [11] [16] The suggestions of the Savas report were also supported by Mayor Edward I. Koch's Parks Commissioner Gordon Davis, and in 1979 the city established the Office of Central Park Administrator and appointed Barlow as the first Central Park Administrator. [12] [17] [18]
On December 13, 1980, [19] the Central Park Task Force and the Central Park Community Fund joined to form the not-for-profit Central Park Conservancy, a public–private partnership created to bring private resources to the public Park. According to commissioner Davis, this was due to a need for "something permanent and nonpolitical, not subject to changes when a commissioner or mayor leaves office; but also something that was accountable to the public and that worked in partnership with the city." [20] Mayor Ed Koch selected philanthropist William Sperry Beinecke as the inaugural chair of the board of the Central Park Conservancy, and Beinecke in turn selected the board's roughly thirty private citizens. [19] [2] [14] Beinecke also named a 44-person "Founders Committee" composed of individuals who had supported Central Park, such as Brooke Astor, George T. Delacorte Jr., Lucy Moses, Paul Newman, and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. The Conservancy included four working committees: the Program and Planning Committee, the Development Committee, the Nominating Committee, and the Audit Committee. [2]
Under the leadership of the Central Park Conservancy, the park's reclamation began by addressing needs that could not be met within NYC Parks' existing resources. The Conservancy hired interns and a small restoration staff to reconstruct and repair unique rustic features, undertaking horticultural projects, and removing graffiti under the broken windows theory, which advocated removing visible signs of decay. [12] [21] [22] [23] According to Conservancy president Douglas Blonsky:
Graffiti doesn't last 24 hours in Central Park; visible litter gets carted off by 9 each morning and throughout the day. Our workers empty trash receptacles daily (at least) and maintain lawns with tremendous care. Broken benches and playground equipment get fixed on the spot. [24]
The first structure to be renovated was the Dairy, which was rehabilitated and reopened as the park's first visitor center in 1979. [25] The Sheep Meadow, which reopened the following year, was the first landscape to be restored. [26] By then, the Conservancy was engaged in design efforts and long-term restoration planning, [27] and it hired Pamela Tice as its CEO in 1981. [28] Some projects were already underway or complete. Bethesda Fountain, which had been dry for decades, was restored in 1981; [29] the USS Maine National Monument and the Bow Bridge had also already been restored. [30] In its first annual financial report, for the two fiscal years ending June 30, 1982, the Conservancy reported $2 million in endowments, most of which came from donors who donated at least $1,000 each. [23]
At the end of 1981, Davis and Barlow announced a 10-year, $100 million "Central Park Management and Restoration Plan", under which all future renovations would proceed. [30] The first project to be undertaken as part of the restoration plan was the renovation of Bethesda Terrace, which started in 1982. [31] The long-closed Belvedere Castle was renovated and reopened in 1983, [32] : 29 winning a renovation award from the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, which had previously designated the park as a scenic landmark. [33] [34] The renovation of Central Park also entailed the examination of thousands of plants, as well as the mapping and construction of new paths along heavily trafficked grass routes. [18] In conjunction with this renovation, the Strawberry Fields memorial to the murdered musician John Lennon was built in the western end of the park, [35] and the Dene Rustic Shelter was restored. [36]
The Conservancy started two fundraising initiatives in fiscal year 1983: the Olmsted Awards Luncheon [23] [37] and "You Gotta Have Park Weekend". [23] [38] On completion of the planning stage in 1985, the conservancy launched its first capital campaign, assuming increasing responsibility for funding the park's restoration, and full responsibility for designing, bidding, and supervising all capital projects in the park. [12] The Conservancy developed a 15-year restoration plan that sought to remain true to the original design while supporting current goals of use. [39]
Over the next several years, the campaign restored landmarks in the southern part of the park, such as Grand Army Plaza [40] and the police station at the 86th Street transverse. [41] In the northern end of the park, the Conservancy restored the Conservatory Garden as designed by the landscape architect Lynden Miller. [42] It reopened in 1987. [43] [44] By 1988, the Conservancy was raising $6 million in donations annually. [45] However, the Conservancy still faced obstacles, including opposition to projects such as the reconstruction of the Mall's bandshell and the erection of the North Meadow Recreation Center. [46]
While most of the park's restorations in the 1980s were Conservancy projects, two major attractions were restored by other entities. Real estate developer Donald Trump took over management of the Wollman Rink in 1987 and renovated it after prior renovation plans were repeatedly delayed. [47] The New York Zoological Society, which signed an agreement with the city to take over management of the Central Park Zoo in 1980, [48] closed the zoo in 1983 for renovation. [49] [18] It reopened four years later, after a $35 million renovation. [50]
The Conservancy began major restoration work at the northern end of the park beginning in 1989, following several assaults on April 19, 1989 in the Central Park jogger case. [51] Work on the Ravine in the northern part of the park was completed by 1992. [52] : 33 The following year, the Conservancy announced a $51 million capital campaign. [53] This resulted in the restoration of bridle trails, [54] the Mall, [52] : 22 the Harlem Meer, [55] and the North Woods, [51] as well as the construction of the Dana Discovery Center at the Harlem Meer. [55]
Afterward, the Conservancy embarked on its most ambitious landscape restoration: the overhaul of the 55 acres (22 hectares) near the Great Lawn and Turtle Pond. [56] The project was the centerpiece of the Conservancy's three-year Wonder of New York Campaign, which raised $71.5 million and also helped restore southern and western landscapes, as well as the North Meadow. [57] The Great Lawn project was completed in 1997. [58]
Though they operated under a memorandum of understanding as a public-private partnership for 18 years, the Conservancy and the City of New York did not formalize a management agreement until 1998, during the administration of Mayor Rudy Giuliani. [3] Under the agreement, the city retained control over major policy decisions about the Park as well as the enforcement of rules and laws within it, while the Conservancy assumed responsibility for day-to-day maintenance and operations. [59] The Conservancy's original contract with the City was renewed in 2006. [60] Under the eight-year agreement, the Conservancy receives an annual fee for services. [3]
Citywide budget cuts in the early 1990s resulted in attrition of the park's routine maintenance staff, and the Conservancy began hiring staff to replace these workers. Management of the restored landscapes by the Conservancy's "zone gardeners" proved so successful that core maintenance and operations staff were reorganized in 1996. The zone-based system of management was implemented throughout the park, which was divided into 49 zones. The Conservancy recruited volunteers to also help in maintenance. In 2007, there were 3,000 volunteers compared to just under 250 paid workers in the park. [61] [24]
Renovation work continued through the first decade of the 21st century. Conservatory Water was restored over six months in 2000, and the restoration of the Pond began the same year. [62] A new Reservoir fence was installed in 2004 under a capital project that replaced the old chain-link fence with a replica of the 8,000-foot long steel and cast-iron one that had enclosed the Reservoir in 1926. The new fence, along with removal of invasive trees and shrubs, restored the panoramic views of the park and Manhattan skyline. [63]
Another ambitious restoration effort began in 2004, when Conservancy staff and contractors worked together to refurbish the ceiling of the Bethesda Arcade. Originally designed by Calvert Vaux and Jacob Wrey Mould, the ceiling of the Arcade is lined by 15,876 elaborately patterned encaustic tiles. Salt and water infiltration from the roadway above had badly damaged the tiles, leaving their backing plates so corroded they had to be removed in the 1980s. [29] The tiles were held in storage for more than 20 years until the Conservancy embarked on a $7 million restoration effort in 2004 to return the Minton tiles to their original luster. [64] The completed Bethesda Terrace Arcade was unveiled in March 2007. [65]
The Ramble and Lake were renovated by the Central Park Conservancy, in a project to enhance both their ecological and scenic aspects. In 2007 the first phase of a restoration of the Lake and its shoreline plantings commenced. [66] During the same time, Bank Rock Bridge was recreated in carved oak with cast-iron panels and pine decking, its original materials, following Vaux's original design of 1859–60. [67] [68] The cascade, where the Gill empties into the lake, was reconstructed to approximate its dramatic original form. The island formerly in the lake, which had gradually eroded below water level, was replanted with aqueous plants such as Pickerel weed. [69] The first renovated sections were opened to visitors in April 2008 [70] and the project was complete by 2012. [71] : 56 The final feature to be restored was the East Meadow, which was rehabilitated in 2011. [72]
The Conservancy began raising money for a $300 million cleanup initiative in 2013, and within three years, it had raised over a third of that amount. [73] [74] Minor renovation projects continued through the park in the late 2010s. The Belvedere Castle was closed in 2018 for an extensive renovation, reopening in June 2019. [75] [76] [77] In 2018, the Conservancy announced that Lasker Rink would be closed from 2020 until 2023 for a $150 million alteration. [78] Later in 2018, the Conservancy announced that the Delacorte Theater would be closed from 2020 to 2022 for a $110 million renovation. [79] The Central Park Conservancy further announced that Lasker Rink would be closed for renovation between 2021 and 2024. [80]
Conservancy crews care for 250 acres (100 ha) acres of lawns, 150 acres (61 ha) of lakes and streams, 80 acres (32 ha) of woodlands, and approximately 18,000 trees. The Conservancy's staff installs hundreds of thousands of plantings annually, including bulbs, shrubs, flowers, and trees. They maintain 10,000 benches, [81] 26 ballfields, and 21 playgrounds and are responsible for the preservation of 55 sculptures and monuments and 36 arches and bridges. [82]
Conservancy crews remove graffiti and collect more than 2,000 tons of trash a year. [82] The Conservancy maintains a zone-management system, which divides Central Park into territories managed by individual supervisors who are held accountable for their zone's condition. The park has 49 zones managed by "zone gardeners" who work with volunteers and specialty crews to maintain their designated landscapes. [83] The Conservancy also collects and brings recyclable items such as paper and plastic to the Mount in the northern part of the park, where the New York City Department of Sanitation collects the items. [84] As part of a pilot program, the Conservancy added pizza box recycling receptacles to the park in 2024. [85] [86]
The Conservancy operates five visitor centers in Central Park: Charles A. Dana Discovery Center, Belvedere Castle, Chess & Checkers House, the Dairy, and Columbus Circle. These visitor centers distribute maps and other information about the park. [87] [88] The Dairy contains the park's official gift shop. [89]
Central Park Conservancy hosts a number of events and activities, such as festivals, games, volunteering opportunities, and tours. [90] Every August since 2003, the Conservancy has hosted the Central Park Film Festival, a series of free film screenings. [91] The Conservancy also hosts Harlem Meer Performance Festival, a free concert series held each summer since 1993. [92] Other activities include catch-and-release fishing in the Harlem Meer; [93] official tours of the park; [94] and board games. [95] Every year, the conservancy sponsors parties such as the springtime Frederick Law Olmsted Awards Luncheon (first hosted in 1983) [96] and a fall luncheon. [97]
Central Park Conservancy's educational division, the Institute for Urban Parks, was founded in 2013 and, according to the Conservancy’s website, draws on its “expertise” in park management “to empower, inform, connect, and celebrate the individuals and organizations that care for urban parks.” [98] The program has assisted with the development of new parks such as the High Line and Brooklyn Bridge Park. [8] : 45–46 Its Five-Borough Program provides staff and programming assistance to parks around the city. [99] [100] [8] : 45
The Conservancy has also participated in cleanup and maintenance initiatives for other New York City parks. In 2005, the Conservancy created the Historic Harlem Parks initiative, providing maintenance, gardening support, and mentoring to workers in Morningside Park, St. Nicholas Park, Jackie Robinson Park, and Marcus Garvey Park in Harlem. [101] [8] : 45 In late 2014, mayor Bill de Blasio announced an initiative where the Conservancy, as well as seven other organizations that care for the city's large public parks, would donate workers, labors, and money to assist smaller parks in New York City's poorer neighborhoods. The Central Park Conservancy would be involved in the cleanup of two dozen parks, and would train gardeners and deploy the Five-Borough Crew to these parks. [102]
The Conservancy's founding board members ex officio included William Sperry Beinecke and Elizabeth Barlow Rogers, as well as mayor Koch, park commissioner Davis, and Manhattan borough president Andrew Stein. [19] Beinecke was the chair of the board of the Central Park Conservancy, while Rogers was the initial president of the Conservancy. [2] [14]
The Conservancy has been led by five presidents over its history. Elizabeth Barlow Rogers, the first and longest-serving president, was appointed as administrator in 1979 [17] and named the Conservancy's first president upon its founding in 1980. [19] She stepped down as both Conservancy president and Central Park administrator at the end of 1995. [103] Karen H. Putnam, who worked as the Conservancy's development director, took over both posts. [103] Douglas Blonsky took over the role of Central Park administrator in 1998. [104] The presidency was not Blonsky's first role in the Conservancy; he had originally been hired as construction supervisor for the Park in 1985 by Rogers. [83]
After Putnam resigned as Conservancy president in 2000, Regina S. Peruggi took on the role, leaving her position as president of Marymount Manhattan College. [105] Peruggi stepped down in 2004 to become president of Kingsborough Community College, [106] and Blonsky took over the role of Conservancy president. [83] Upon Blonsky's retirement in 2017, Elizabeth W. Smith became president in March 2018. [104]
In the fiscal year ending June 30, 2022, the Central Park Conservancy had net assets (own equity) of $503.975 million and liabilities of $20.581 million, which amounted to total assets of $524,556 million. Net assets increased $22.088 million from the fiscal year ending June 30, 2021. [107] For tax purposes, the Conservancy's Employer Identification Number is 13-3022855. [108]
The Conservancy had an annual operating budget of $65–67 million in 2016, of which 75% comes from donations and the balance from municipal and state tax revenue. [7] [4] The Central Park Conservancy's overall endowment was over $200 million in 2014. [5] Much of this amount came from large donations. The largest was in October 2012, when hedge fund manager John A. Paulson announced a $100 million gift to the Central Park Conservancy, the largest ever monetary donation to New York City's park system. [109] [110] [74] Prior to Paulson's gift, the majority of donations to the Conservancy came from a relatively small group of 55,000 people who lived within a "10-minute walk" of Central Park. [111] As of 2016 [update] , the Conservancy had spent nearly $800 million on improving Central Park. [4]
The Conservancy has received several awards and honors. In 2001, the Conservancy and three other organizations were given the Award for Outstanding Commitment to the Preservation and Care of Collections by the American Institute for Conservation. [112] [113] In 2008, the American Planning Association recognized Central Park for being one of that year's Great Public Spaces in America. The association described the Park as "arguably the most emulated park in the country" and cited it as "an exemplary public space that successfully maintains a large naturalistic landscape in the midst of one of the densest cities in the country." [114] Additionally, in 2017, the American Society of Landscape Architects gave the Conservancy the Landscape Architecture Medal of Excellence. [115]
Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City that was the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the sixth-largest park in the city, containing 843 acres (341 ha), and the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated 42 million visitors annually as of 2016.
Riverside Park is a scenic waterfront public park in the Upper West Side, Morningside Heights, and Hamilton Heights neighborhoods of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The park measures 4 miles (6.4 km) long and 100 to 500 feet wide, running between the Hudson River and Henry Hudson Parkway to the west and the serpentine Riverside Drive to the east.
Prospect Park is a 526-acre (2.13 km2) urban park in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The park is situated between the neighborhoods of Park Slope, Prospect Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Flatbush, and Windsor Terrace, and is adjacent to the Brooklyn Museum, Grand Army Plaza, and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. With an area of 526 acres (213 ha), Prospect Park is the second-largest public park in Brooklyn, behind Marine Park. Designated as a New York City scenic landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Prospect Park is operated by the Prospect Park Alliance and NYC Parks.
Morningside Park is a 30-acre (12-hectare) public park in Upper Manhattan, New York City. The park is bounded by 110th Street to the south, 123rd Street to the north, Morningside Avenue to the east, and Morningside Drive to the west. A cliff made of Manhattan schist runs through the park and separates Morningside Heights, above the cliff to the west, from Harlem. The park includes other rock outcroppings; a human-made ornamental pond and waterfall; three sculptures; several athletic fields; playgrounds; and an arboretum. Morningside Park is operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, although the group Friends of Morningside Park helps maintain it.
Bryant Park is a 9.6-acre (39,000 m2), privately managed public park in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is located between Fifth Avenue and Avenue of the Americas and between 40th and 42nd Streets in Midtown Manhattan. The eastern half of Bryant Park is occupied by the Main Branch of the New York Public Library. The western half contains a lawn, shaded walkways, and amenities such as a carousel, and is located entirely over an underground structure that houses the library's stacks. The park hosts several events, including a seasonal "Winter Village" with an ice rink and shops during the winter.
Castle Clinton is a restored circular sandstone fort within Battery Park at the southern end of Manhattan in New York City. Built from 1808 to 1811, it was the first American immigration station, predating Ellis Island. More than 7.5 million people arrived in the United States at Fort Clinton between 1855 and 1890. Over its active life, it has also functioned as a beer garden, exhibition hall, theater, and public aquarium. The structure is a New York City designated landmark and a United States national monument, and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Central Park Zoo is a 6.5-acre (2.6 ha) zoo located at the southeast corner of Central Park in New York City. It is part of an integrated system of four zoos and one aquarium managed by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). In conjunction with the Central Park Zoo's operations, the WCS offers children's educational programs, is engaged in restoration of endangered species populations, and reaches out to the local community through volunteer programs.
The Delacorte Theater is a 1,800-seat open-air theater in Central Park, in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is home to the Public Theater's free Shakespeare in the Park productions. As of September 2023, it has been closed for renovations that are expected to complete in spring 2025.
Belvedere Castle is a folly in Central Park in Manhattan, New York City. It contains exhibit rooms, an observation deck, and since 1919 has housed Central Park’s official weather station.
McCarren Park is a public park in Brooklyn, New York City. It is located on the border of Williamsburg and Greenpoint and is bordered by Nassau Avenue, Bayard Street, Lorimer Street and North 12th Street. The park contains facilities for recreational softball, volleyball, soccer, handball, and other games. It is also used for sunbathing and dog-walking. It also includes the McCarren Play Center, which consists of a recreation center and a pool. McCarren Park is maintained by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
Bethesda Terrace and Fountain are two architectural features overlooking the southern shore of the Lake in New York City's Central Park. The fountain, with its Angel of the Waters statue, is located in the center of the terrace.
Highbridge Park is a public park on the western bank of the Harlem River in Washington Heights, Manhattan, New York City. It stretches between 155th Street and Dyckman Street in Upper Manhattan. The park is operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. The City maintains the southern half of the park, while the northern half is maintained by the non-profit New York Restoration Project. Prominent in the park are the Manhattan end of the High Bridge, the High Bridge Water Tower, and the Highbridge Play Center.
The Conservatory Garden is a formal garden near the northeastern corner of Central Park in Upper Manhattan, New York City. Comprising 6 acres (24,000 m2), it is the only formal garden in Central Park. Conservatory Garden takes its name from a conservatory that stood on the site from 1898 to 1935. It is located just west of Fifth Avenue, opposite 104th to 106th Streets.
The Great Lawn and Turtle Pond are two connected features of Central Park in Manhattan, New York City, United States. The lawn and pond are located on the site of a former reservoir for the Croton Aqueduct system which was infilled during the early 20th century.
The Ramble and Lake are two geographic features of Central Park in Manhattan, New York City. Part of Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux's 1857 Greensward Plan for Central Park, the features are located on the west side of the park between the 66th and 79th Street transverses.
The Park Avenue Armory Conservancy is a nonprofit cultural institution housed within the historic Park Avenue Armory building located at 643 Park Avenue on New York City's Upper East Side. The institution displays unconventional artwork, including performing and visual arts.
Sheep Meadow is a 15-acre (61,000 m2) meadow near the southwestern section of Central Park, between West 66th and 69th Streets in Manhattan, New York City. It is adjacent to Central Park Mall to the east, The Ramble and Lake to the north, West Drive to the west, and Heckscher Playground and Ballfields to the south.
The Battery, formerly known as Battery Park, is a 25-acre (10 ha) public park located at the southern tip of Manhattan Island in New York City facing New York Harbor. It is bounded by Battery Place on the north, with Bowling Green to the northeast, State Street on the east, New York Harbor to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. The park contains attractions such as an early 19th-century fort named Castle Clinton; multiple monuments; and the SeaGlass Carousel. The surrounding area, known as South Ferry, contains multiple ferry terminals, including the Staten Island Ferry's Whitehall Terminal; a boat launch to the Statue of Liberty National Monument ; and a boat launch to Governors Island.
North Woods and North Meadow are two interconnected features in the northern section of Central Park, New York City, close to the neighborhoods of the Upper West Side and Harlem in Manhattan. The 90-acre (36 ha) North Woods, in the northwestern corner of the park, is a rugged woodland that contains a forest called the Ravine, as well as two water features called the Loch and the Pool. The western portion of the North Woods also includes Great Hill, the third highest point in Central Park. North Meadow, a recreation center and sports complex, is immediately southeast of the North Woods. Completed in the 1860s, North Woods and North Meadow were among the last parts of Central Park to be built.
Heckscher Playground is a play area located in New York City's Central Park, located close to Central Park South between Sixth Avenue and Seventh Avenue. It is the oldest and largest of Central Park's 22 playgrounds.
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