Tennis and Fountains in Flushing Queens
Biking in Queens is one of my favorite pastimes. This weekend I was fortunate enough to be invited to the US Open in Flushing Meadows. Here are some photo highlights of the bike trip to and from the event. And here is the video of the trip taken while cycling through the park.
Flowing Flushing Fountains and the Unisphere
The first thing I noticed were these flowing fountains. The normally drained pool is typically filled with roller skaters and skate boarders on any given summer afternoon. This is the first time I have ever seen the fountains. Apparently the thousands of patrons from the neighborhood that visit this park every year are not enough incentive to maintain the up-keep of the park… or to keep the fountains filled with water.
Children Playing in Fountain
Observatory Towers: Trash or Treasure?
Flushing Meadows is a vast area of land that holds a zoo, merry-go-round, a theater, miles of bike paths, ponds, Queens Museum of Art, the New York Hall of Science and the home of the US Open. The park also contains this decrepit structure that, like many of the structures in the park, was built specifically for the 1964/65 World’s Fair. Rusted and structurally unsound- I spotted people roaming at the top of one of the observatory towers.
Another surprising observation, was the masses of park security and police, which are usually absent or sparse within the grounds of the park. This weekend they were swarming in their vehicles, on foot, horseback, and bicycles. They did not notice the figures walking about on the top of the observatory towers, but the park police did notice this party’s raucous salsa music. Although, the private festivities were set far from the tennis match and disturbed no one, the security guards still decided to confiscate the stereo system- creating quite a stir.
Crashing the Party: Park security confiscating a stereo
Placing the confiscated stereo in the trunk
Well at least they were permitting some culturally stimulating music in the grounds of the stadium… even if they couldn’t play outside in private picnics…
The band plays on inside the grounds of the US Open
Girls play in an empty fountain in Flushing Meadows
Despite the lack of upkeep and funding the park exhibits, it isn’t a complete wasteland. Many people manage to make good use of the debilitated park facilities, such as the picture above, providing a functioning example of how the city could restore and re-use the crippled structures.
Below- the monumentally attractive Arthur Ashe stadium before the match… Nadia Petrova vs Melanie Oudin and her pink and yellow shoes.
Arthur Ashe before the match
