Ross Memorial Park in Brentwood, closed for repairs during pandemic, set to reopen with upgrades, town supervisor says
Brentwood Chamber of Commerce President Bruce Fabrizio at Ross Memorial Park in Brentwood, which will include a new playground, gazebo, lighting structures, security cameras and a stage for performances, town officials said. Construction on the playground is underway. Credit: Danielle Silverman
A Brentwood park that’s been closed since 2020 for repairs and upgrades is set to reopen by the end of this year, Islip Supervisor Angie Carpenter said Tuesday.
The Ross Memorial Park will include a new playground, gazebo, lighting structures, security cameras and a stage for performances, town officials said. The town is also working with Suffolk County to eventually move five bus shelters near the park that lawmakers say have contributed to a local crime problem.
Construction on the playground began around Sept 4, the town said.
Carpenter said a new parking lot has already been built in the northeast corner of the park and construction on the playground is underway.
“I think once the playground is up, it sends the message loud and clear … this is for the community,” she said.
The three-acre park on Brentwood Road was shuttered during the pandemic for repairs and improvements after a melee in which two Suffolk County police officers were injured, Newsday has previously reported.
Carpenter said the site had been known for criminal activity such as drug use and sales, and had negatively impacted local businesses.
Bruce Fabrizio, president of the Brentwood Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber has been urging the town to develop the park for more than a decade. “Bad characters hanging around in the park … did hurt the businesses in the area,” he said.
He highlighted enthusiasm from the chamber for the town’s efforts to renovate the site and said he hopes the park will become a “cultural center of Brentwood,” with events like a summer concert series.
“We’re really trying here in the Chamber to make Brentwood a better place and, in turn, make it better for businesses and if we can develop a walking downtown … we will all be better for it.” He said the Chamber is working to secure funds for beautification in the area.
Suffolk County Legis. Samuel Gonzalez (D-Brentwood), who has previously criticized slow progress on park renovations, said he's at the point where "it is all positive."
Gonzalez said the bus shelters near the park will be moved by the first week of October to where the county is opening "a brand new hub right near the entrance" of the Long Island Rail Road Station in Brentwood.
"I've been working on this for years," he said. "It's finally moving forward."
"We are actually trying to create that downtown revitalization in Brentwood for the first time," he added.
Assemb. Phil Ramos (D-Brentwood) secured a $655,000 capital grant from the state last year to be used for park improvements. So far, $416,000 has been allocated for concrete, perimeter fencing, a new parking lot and the new playground, town officials said.
Islip does not yet have a number for the total cost of upgrades.
“These investments not only deal with the vagrancy problem and the crime problem, but they also give our residents some disposable dollars in the form of equity,” he said.
“As a result of this bipartisan effort, that construction has started and we're actually really seeing some real solutions to some of the real problems that we have in Brentwood.”
A Brentwood park that’s been closed since 2020 for repairs and upgrades is set to reopen by the end of this year, Islip Supervisor Angie Carpenter said Tuesday.
The Ross Memorial Park will include a new playground, gazebo, lighting structures, security cameras and a stage for performances, town officials said. The town is also working with Suffolk County to eventually move five bus shelters near the park that lawmakers say have contributed to a local crime problem.
Construction on the playground began around Sept 4, the town said.
Carpenter said a new parking lot has already been built in the northeast corner of the park and construction on the playground is underway.
“I think once the playground is up, it sends the message loud and clear … this is for the community,” she said.
The three-acre park on Brentwood Road was shuttered during the pandemic for repairs and improvements after a melee in which two Suffolk County police officers were injured, Newsday has previously reported.
Carpenter said the site had been known for criminal activity such as drug use and sales, and had negatively impacted local businesses.
Bruce Fabrizio, president of the Brentwood Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber has been urging the town to develop the park for more than a decade. “Bad characters hanging around in the park … did hurt the businesses in the area,” he said.
He highlighted enthusiasm from the chamber for the town’s efforts to renovate the site and said he hopes the park will become a “cultural center of Brentwood,” with events like a summer concert series.
“We’re really trying here in the Chamber to make Brentwood a better place and, in turn, make it better for businesses and if we can develop a walking downtown … we will all be better for it.” He said the Chamber is working to secure funds for beautification in the area.
Suffolk County Legis. Samuel Gonzalez (D-Brentwood), who has previously criticized slow progress on park renovations, said he's at the point where "it is all positive."
Gonzalez said the bus shelters near the park will be moved by the first week of October to where the county is opening "a brand new hub right near the entrance" of the Long Island Rail Road Station in Brentwood.
"I've been working on this for years," he said. "It's finally moving forward."
"We are actually trying to create that downtown revitalization in Brentwood for the first time," he added.
Assemb. Phil Ramos (D-Brentwood) secured a $655,000 capital grant from the state last year to be used for park improvements. So far, $416,000 has been allocated for concrete, perimeter fencing, a new parking lot and the new playground, town officials said.
Islip does not yet have a number for the total cost of upgrades.
“These investments not only deal with the vagrancy problem and the crime problem, but they also give our residents some disposable dollars in the form of equity,” he said.
“As a result of this bipartisan effort, that construction has started and we're actually really seeing some real solutions to some of the real problems that we have in Brentwood.”
Ross Memorial Park
• Local lawmakers broke ground last week at Ross Memorial Park in Brentwood on a new playground, part of an overhaul of the park that legislators expect to wrap up by the end of this year.
• Besides the playground, a site at the park has been prepared for the installation of a gazebo, and work has finished on stamped concrete walkways and a new parking lot. Islip Town also plans to add lighting structures, high-definition surveillance cameras and a stage for the performing arts, according to town officials.
• Plans for the park include a summer concert series "to bring the arts to Brentwood, where families can enjoy different concerts during the weekends in the summer," Assemb. Phil Ramos (D-Brentwood) said.
Brianne Ledda covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. She previously covered Southold and Greenport for The Suffolk Times and is a graduate of Stony Brook University.
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