Marsha P. Johnson State Park

The site of an old marine and shortline rail terminal on the East River, at the edge of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, became a state park in 2007. Thirteen years later the state renamed East River State Park in honor of transgender activist Marsha P. Johnson.

But there's been a lot of change here besides the name. An extremely outdated description at nyctourism.com says this: "East River State Park, otherwise known as the Williamsburg Waterfront, is not fancy: stage, concrete, water...Families can relax amongst historic rail yard remnants, and in the summer, take in family-friendly music and film series."

That doesn't remotely describe today's Marsha P. Johnson State Park, which abuts the unremarkable sports fields of Bushwick Inlet Park. It has some of the fancy trappings that go with our age of reckless real estate development and gentrification, but also exudes a neighborhood-y feel.

The big benefit of a park in this location is, of course, the waterfront.

In the upper left of the photo above there's a seaplane, on the way to Boston perhaps.

Waterfront aside, there's space here for both family fun and sleepy romance.

Remnants of the site's industrial past flowed together with spring flowers and chalked whimsy on a mid-May visit.

A little wooden train perhaps is meant to suggest the short trains that ran here from the waterfront to the lot or street where cargo could be taken up by vehicles for delivery or processing.

Jumbles of stones make good play spaces.

There's fun – and relaxation opportunities – aplenty in this quiet park.

The park's renaming occurred under the Andrew Cuomo administration in 2020. Signage here will tell you that Marsha P. Johnson (1945-1992) was a "Black gay and trans liberation activist, drag queen performer, actress, and sex worker [who]...struggled with mental illness" and lived with HIV/AIDS.

She "was known in the West Village for her charisma, joyfulness, and generosity, while living against great odds...Many called her a saint: Saint Marsha."

After the Stonewall uprising, where she was present, she "moved to the forefront of the Gay Liberation Movement." The "P" in her name, we are told, stood for a motto of hers, "Pay it no mind," which is written over her park's main entrance on Kent Ave.

Her body was found in the Hudson River in July of 1992. Uncertainty lingers over whether her death was a suicide or murder.

In recent years New York City has acted to belatedly honor African Americans by naming parks for them. New York State has taken steps in that direction too, and in this case with an African American who was also part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Along the same lines, In March 2024 present governor Kathy Hochul issued a proclamation declaring a Transgender Day of Visibility.

Netflix released a documentary about Johnson in 2017.

Hank O'Neal, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Marsha P. Johnson State Park carries only remnants of the site's industrial/commercial past, but history lives on all around Brooklyn. Consider these old stable doors on a nearby street.

And history is made by all kinds of people. Case in point: Marsha P. Johnson State Park.

All photos © Oren Hope except where noted

Paseo Park: A Linear Park in the Making, and Travers Park

Jackson Heights is one of the city's most lively and interesting neighborhoods, reputed to be one of the most diverse places in the world. Some have counted over 160 languages spoken in this section of Queens.

What Jackson Heights doesn't have is a park, or not much of one anyway. Alliance for Paseo Park is trying to change that by transforming a 26-block, mile-plus stretch of 34th Avenue into a linear park. We paid a visit recently to see how it's coming along.

So, is Paseo Park closed to automobile traffic?

Best answer I have right now: Yes and no. No and yes.

The Greenmarket sets up shop here on Sundays, a nice consonance. (The tents in the following photo are the giveaway.)

Are there festive, colorful blocks adorning these blocks? That's a yes.

The project grew out of NYC's pandemic-spawned Open Streets program, which sets aside stretches of certain avenues around the city for pedestrians only on Saturdays in the summer and has become a permanent feature of city life.

Why "Paseo Park?" "Paseo" means "a leisurely stroll or promenade" in Spanish.

While on your stroll or promenade, you'll come upon an existing park. Travers Park is primarily a playground and sports facility, but has enough spots for passive recreation that it merits a mention here. One unusual feature is a big grassy field that doesn't seem to be designated for anything but lolling about.

Not unusual are these stone chess tables, a common sight in New York City's parks.

Trees were in bloom on the day of our visit.

Travers Park also has its own "Friends of" organization.

Thomas J. Travers (1897–1958) was a community leader. Here's what I liked about the brief bio on the Parks Department website:

"After serving in the U.S. Navy during World War I, he returned to New York to marry his childhood sweetheart, Ann Desmond."

A New York Times article headlined "Jackson Heights, Global Town Square" reported in 2020:

Even by New York standards, Jackson Heights is changing so fast and contains so many different communities that no single walk can begin to take in the whole neighborhood. There’s a booming Latin American cultural scene, a growing Nepali and Tibetan contingent, an urban activist movement, pioneering car bans on local streets. This is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's district, and it is represented by a longtime openly gay city councilman named Daniel Dromm.

Open streets? Openly gay? All you have to do is open your mind, and look: a new park.

Taking a walk in Jackson Heights? Park Odyssey recommends a dosa and a curry at vegetarian South Indian restaurant Samudra followed by ice cream at Jahn's.

All photos © Oren Hope