It's Final: 'Lake Ness Monster,' Freeze-Proof Water Fountains Coming to Prospect Park

PROSPECT PARK, BROOKLYN — The results are in for this year's Participatory Budgeting vote in Brooklyn, in which residents decided which local projects and programs should be funded by City Hall.

And among the winners, according to the Councilman Brad Lander, are two Prospect Park-centric projects: 1) an aquatic weed harvester and scum cleaner named the “Lake Mess Monster” and 2) a set of five "year-round, freeze-resistant" drinking fountains along Prospect Park Drive.

Below is a full list of the 11 winning items in Lander's district, which covers all of Park Slope and parts of Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, the Columbia Waterfront, Gowanus, Windsor Terrace, Kensington and Borough Park.

On the Capital Projects Ballot:

1. New “Lake Mess Monster,” an Aquatic Weed Harvester ($140,000) – 1692 votes
2. Year-Round, Freeze-Resistant Drinking Fountains ($175,000) – 1541 votes
3. Bus Clocks on B67/B69: Know When Bus Arrives! ($240,000) -- 1533 votes
4. Create Teen Space at Carroll Gardens Library ($350,000) – 1321 votes
5. West Brooklyn Community HS Portable Laptop Lab ($105,000) –1275 votes
6. Mobile Studios" for Artists and Orgs in Gowanus ($150,000) – 1122 votes
7. Curb Extension & Safer Crossing- Carroll Park ($150,000) –- 1115 votes
8. Retrofit 75 Auditorium Lights for Safety at PS 282 ($200,000) – 1024 votes

On the “Programming” Ballot:

1. Translation Equipment for Multi-Lingual Schools ($25,000) – 1891 votes
2. Music Equipment for Three Senior Centers ($5,000) – 1618 votes
3. Overnight Book Drops at Three Library Branches ($24,000) – 1388 votes

All very exciting. However, Lander's warned Thursday, "Don’t expect to see completed projects right away. Some projects from past years are already complete, but others still require at least a couple years of planning, community input, and construction."