Have you ever wondered how local parks are renovated and redesigned? How an outdated park can be transformed with fresh ideas and infrastructure?

Large scale improvements to parks, playgrounds, and greenways are happening all across New York City as part of the NYC Parks capital process; in fact, from sports field renovation to boardwalk resiliency, there are over 600 capital projects underway at this very moment.

Come to this workshop to learn:

• The basics of how NYC Parks funds, designs, and constructs the parks we love and enjoy
• What qualifies as a capital project, the steps for its completion–including needs assessment, procuring contractors, and construction–and how you can use the Capital Project Tracker to keep track of the timeline
• And how communities can effectively gather data and ideas to participate in this process and provide input on park design

Featured speakers include:

• Diane Jackier, Chief of Capital Strategic Initiatives, NYC Parks

Diane is the chief of Capital Strategic Initiatives at NYC Parks. In this role, she oversees division-wide initiatives to improve the quality and efficiency of Parks’ capital process. She also supervises the staff in the quality assurance, data systems, and accessibility units in the Capital Division. Diane has a Master of City Planning, a Master of Science in historic preservation, and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania.

• Krystyna Soljan, Community Visioning & Planning Manager, Partnerships for Parks

As the Community Visioning & Planning manager at Partnerships for Parks, Krystyna Soljan helps community park groups gather necessary data to support their advocacy campaigns for capital improvements in local parks. Previously, she provided technical assistance and support to worker-owned cooperative businesses across NYC, and to neighborhood leaders in Newark, NJ.

• Evan Venegas, Group Leader, Friends of Rosemary’s Playground

Queens native Evan Venegas helped found Friends of Rosemary’s Playground in 2014, with other parents from the Ridgewood neighborhood. Motivated by safety concerns and a lack of green space, Evan helped build relationships between the community, elected officials, and NYC Parks. Through this advocacy work, the group has secured funds for a capital project to renovate the playground and re-imagine how great their park can be. 

For more information or questions, please email relzinga@cityparksfoundation.org.