Drummers Circle vendors getting the Red Hook treatment

Some rumors have circulated recently that The Man is trying to shut down the Prospect Park Drum Circle. The rumor is true in part, but only part.

The good news is that the drum circle itself is under no threat. (The Man apparently likes the drum circle.) The vendors around the Drummers' Circle, however, now have some paperwork and additional fees to pay if they want to remain at Drummers Grove.

In the past, the Parks Department had an agreement with the vendors that allowed them to merely pay a fee to the general fund of the city of New York. It was an arrangement not unlike the one with Latino food carts in Red Hook.

But if you know what happened to the Red Hook vendors, you know what happens next. Since someone at City headquarters decided that long-term (multi-month) agreements must be bid out, the Department of Parks and Recreations is openly soliciting bids for the Drummers' Grove area. The current vendors thus have to collectively put in a proposal and submit a bid. Individual food vendors will also continue to need permits from the Health Department.

So far as we know, no other vendors have submitted bids. Chances are the current vendors' bid will be the winning one (which is what happened in Red Hook). I tried several times to talk to Drummers Grove rep Fela Cameron about it, to no avail. But we'll keep you posted...

(Photo: Jen Robinson)

Prospect Park scales back "Lakeside" project

Back before everyone's money disappeared, we posted about Prospect Park's neato plan for re-envisioning our corner of the park: replacing Wollman skating rink with a larger, eco-friendly rink/family center; adding green space; and restoring wildlife habitat. Alas, the Lakeside Center project has gone the way of other City ambitions... which isn't to say it won't happen, just not as planned.

For one thing, construction has been pushed back and won't begin until 2011 at the earliest. For another, the center itself has been scaled down to one story from two. The original plan called for a fancy green roof that park-goers could traverse, but apparently that feature added too many millions to the budget.

On the bright side, according to Prospect Park Alliance president Tupper Thomas, most of the money for the project has already been raised: $45 million is in the bank; $15 more is needed for completion. And the plan to move the entrance for motorists from Parkside to Lincoln Road — to redesign access to the parking lot — is bound to make things safer for pedestrians, cyclists, and joggers.

Chaplin in the Park

If you're in the area this weekend, there should be a good show this Friday at Prospect Park bandshell. Not only will three Charlie Chaplin shorts be shown (The Rink, The Immigrant, and The Adventurer), there will also be musical accompaniment in the form of a 16 piece orchestra  performing new scores by Brooklyn-born composer and conductor Carl Davis, along with a violin solo.

The free performance starts at 7:30 this Friday, August 1st (tickets not required). Grab your picnic blanket, head out across the park and enjoy!

Hearing on Park's use of fake grass - Thurs. 12/13

From Flatbush Gardener: Next Thursday, from 10am to 12noon (at 250 Broadway, 14th Floor Hearing Room) there will be an oversight hearing on the use of artificial turf in NYC's parks."

You know, like on the parade grounds just south of Prospect Park.

Perhaps the most pressing concern here is the claim that synthetic turf is toxic, containing "highly carcinogenic benzo(a)pyrene" among other treasures.

New Yorkers for Parks has published, A New Turf War: Synthetic Turf in New York City, which provides background on the pros and cons of sythetic turf and offers recommendations but leaves the health issue as a glaring open question. According to the report, no one really knows one way or another if this stuff is safe or not because its safety hasn't been adequately studied. (On the upside, no one has definitely proved it to be unsafe, either.)