Weigh In On Prospect Park's New Shirley Chisholm Welcome Center

PROSPECT PARK, NY — Locals will have their chance to weigh in on a welcome center named after Shirley Chisholm, a powerful Central Brooklyn political figure who will soon tower over the park's Parkside entrance.

On Wednesday, electeds, park authorities and other local leaders will meet at Medgar Evers College to discuss the new welcome center, which will transform an existing maintenance building at the park's entrance on Parkside and Ocean avenues.

Locals can participate in Wednesday's discussion at Medgar Evers College's Academic Building 1 or online via Zoom starting at 6 p.m.

The new center, dubbed the "Shirley Chisholm Welcome Center," will not only orient park visitors but introduce locals to Chisholm's legacy as a powerful representative of Central Brooklyn in the State Assembly and the first Black woman in Congress, organizers said.

And, to kick off Wednesday's meeting, Ingrid Griffith will do just the same by performing pieces from her one-woman show about Chisholm, "Unbossed and Unbowed."

The welcome center is part of a significant remodel of the Parkside entrance, plans for which include a new protected bike lane and a 32-foot-tall monument of Chisholm.

The city in July cleared a drafted plan for the revised Shirley Chisholm monument created by artists Amanda Williams and Olalekan Jeyifous.

Locals were delighted with an early look at plans for yellowish gold and green sculpture in July, which include a depiction of a well-known photo of Chisholm, the Capital building and the U.S. House floor.