Flushing's Bland Playground To Get $5.5 Million Renovation

FLUSHING, QUEENS — The Bland Playground in Flushing will get a full, $5.5 million renovation thanks to the newly-passed City Council budget.

The playground, located on 40th Road in the heart of downtown Flushing, will get much-needed equipment upgrades to better serve families in the neighborhood, City Council Member Peter Koo said.

Bland Playground opened to the public in the 1950s.

It is named in honor of Flushing native James A. Bland, the famed African American folk singer who wrote "Carry Me Back to Old Virginny" and was known as the "world’s greatest minstrel man," according to the parks department.

The City Council voted Wednesday to adopt a $92.8 billion city budget for the fiscal year 2020, which begins July 1 and ends June 30, 2020.