Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Sinking Fields May Delay Fresh Kills Park's First Segment
By
Garth Johnston
Published Mar 14, 2011
Modified Mar 14, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
kerfuffle & zeitgeist's flickr
By
Garth Johnston
Published Mar 14, 2011
Modified Mar 14, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
It feels like just yesterday we were writing about how the city was hoping to turn the Fresh Kills dump in Staten Island into a a park three times the size of Central Park. And yet it was five years ago when the city first gave tours of the park to be (above). But despite those nifty bike racks we saw plans for last week it is going to be sometime more before we can go tiptoeing through the landfill-fed tulips on Staten Island. The opening of Owl Hollow Fields—the first segment of the parkification featuring 28 acres of soccer fields and other amenities meant to open in December—is likely to be delayed. Why? Because it is sinking.
Parks Department workers and the contracter in charge of the project currently believe that the sand laid out as foundation at the area has dropped by between eight inches and a foot since October 2009.
Though the city still thinks the fields are on track to be done by December the contractor in charge of them was far less optimistic. Donald Gangi of D. Gangi told the Post the fields are just barely 20% complete and will take another two years to finish. A Parks Department spokeswoman said the city "is working with the contractor to determine if sinking is occurring, and we will take the appropriate steps once the condition of the site is determined."
The segment was only priced at $6.8 million in 2006 but has already jumped to $14 million. $4.5 million of that was unavoidable. The city had been under the impression the area of the park had not been used for dumping previously and had to spend the dough to clean it up after the DEC found PCBs in the ground.
Tagged
Fresh Kills
Fresh Kills Parks
parks department
staten island
Garth Johnston
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Forest Hills Stadium can keep its concerts under deal with neighbors
Neighbors had complained of traffic and loud concerts for years.
By
Ryan Kost
Published Oct 22, 2026 at 2:49 p.m. ET
NYC Council to grill Mamdani officials on collapsed Hunts Point Produce Market deal
Council Speaker Julie Menin called the $650 million plan "mission critical."
By
Elizabeth Kim
News
NYC Council to grill Mamdani officials on collapsed Hunts Point Produce Market deal
Council Speaker Julie Menin called the $650 million plan "mission critical."
By
Elizabeth Kim
NYPD arrests 17-year-old in fatal Midtown subway platform shooting
By
Charles Lane
Ex-Adams aide accused of pocketing kickbacks from community program funds
By
Samantha Max
MTA to begin 6-year project to upgrade signal tech on A and C lines in Brooklyn and Queens
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .