Riverbank State Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park |
|
|---|---|
The waste treatment plant and park as seen from across the river
|
|
| Type | State park |
| Location | Manhattan, New York City, NY |
| Area | 28 acres (11 ha) |
| Created | 1993 |
| Operated by | New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation |
| Visitors | 3,187,269 (in 2014) |
| Status | Open all year |
Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park is a special park in New York City. It covers 28-acre (11 ha) and sits right on top of a big water cleaning facility. This park is located along the Hudson River in Manhattan. It first opened its doors in 1993.
On September 5, 2017, the park was renamed to honor Denny Farrell. He was a respected member of the New York State Assembly for a long time. He worked hard for the area around the park.
Contents
About Riverbank State Park
Riverbank State Park was designed by Dattner Architects and Abel Bainnson Butz Landscape Architects. It opened in 1993. The first idea for building a park on top of the water cleaning plant came from Philip Johnson. The park is found along the Henry Hudson Parkway, between 137th Street and 145th Street. It is 69 feet (21 m) high above the Hudson River.
Built on a Water Cleaning Plant
The park is built over the North River Wastewater Treatment Plant. This plant cleans a lot of dirty water every day. It processes 125 million US gallons (470,000 m3) of wastewater when the weather is dry. It can handle up to 340 million US gallons (1,300,000 m3) a day when it rains a lot.
To make sure the park smells fresh, special systems are in place. These systems help control any bad smells from the plant. They have even had $55 million in recent upgrades to keep the air clean. The plant itself sits on 2,300 strong pillars called caissons. These pillars go deep into the bedrock, up to 230 feet (70 m) below the river.
Fun Things to Do at the Park
Riverbank State Park is one of only three state parks in Manhattan. The others are Hudson River Park and Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park. Riverbank has become one of the most popular state parks in New York.
The park has many cool features for everyone to enjoy. You can find an Olympic-size swimming pool here. It is home to the Riverbank Redtails swim team. There is also a covered skating rink. You can roller skate there in the summer and ice skate in the winter.
The park also has an 800-seat cultural theater for shows. There is a large athletic complex with a fitness room and 2,500 seats. If you get hungry, you can visit the 150-seat restaurant. While you can't ride bikes inside the park, the Hudson River Greenway is right at water level. A very popular ride at the park is the Totally Kid Carousel. It was created by Maria Reidelbach and Milo Mottola.
A Special Green Space
The 28-acre (11 ha) park has many sports fields with special surfaces. It also has several acres of "green roofs." A green roof is like a living roof, with different depths of soil. This soil supports plants and trees that can grow up to 35 feet (11 m) tall. This makes Riverbank State Park the largest green roof in New York City.
See also
In Spanish: Riverbank State Park para niños
