Dugan Playground is located in the neighborhood of New Dorp. This park is about three acres in size and stretches from Mill Road to Weed Avenue. Dugan Playground is bordered by these streets and is located between Tysens Lane and Isernia Avenue.
In 1931, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation obtained the land that makes up Dugan Playground. From the time that the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation opened this park up until 1974, this park was just an empty lot and did not have an official name.
In 1974, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation updated the empty lot into a nice playground for the community and renamed it Dugan Playground. This park was named for Gerard P. Dugan.
Gerard Dugan was born in Brooklyn and didn't move to Staten Island until 1935, after he served in the Marine Corps. At this time he worked for the Bethlehem Steel Company and became a community activist. While serving the community, Gerard Dugan helped organize the Oakwood Beach Resident Committee, he served as the President of the Oakwood Civic Association, he served as Chairman of the Hurricane Protection
Committee, and he served as a delegate on the Civic Congress of Staten Island. As a way to honor to his work, Gerard Dugan was awarded the Richmond County Borough President Award and he received an Achievement Award from the Civic Congress of Staten Island.
When the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation updated this park they added a bunch of facilities for the whole community. This park now holds play units, swings, a spray shower, two baseball fields, a basketball court, two handball courts, a comfort station, benches, and water fountains.
Posted by Anthony Licciardello on
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