Mafera Park (officially Joseph F. Mafera Park) is a park in

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, United States. It is approximately in size, located adjacent to the

New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...

's Fresh Pond Yard and close to the Fresh Pond Junction between the

Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , or LIRR, is a Rail transport, railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County on Long Islan ...

Bay Ridge Bay Ridge is a neighborhood in the southwest corner of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by Sunset Park to the north, Dyker Heights to the east, the Narrows and the Belt Parkway to the west, and Fort Hamilton Army Base an ...

and Lower Montauk branches. It has facilities for baseball, basketball, roller hockey, and handball. The park is named after Ridgewood resident Joseph F. Mafera; when Mafera died in 1967, the park was renamed by law in his honor. The City of New York purchased the land in 1948, and on June 28, 1949, a groundbreaking ceremony was held, featuring New York City mayor William O'Dwyer, Queens Borough President James A. Burke, and Commissioner of Parks and Recreation

Robert Moses Robert Moses (December 18, 1888 – July 29, 1981) was an American urban planner and public official who worked in the New York metropolitan area during the early to mid-20th century. Moses is regarded as one of the most powerful and influentia ...

. Mafera Park was also known as Farmers' Oval due to the park's history hosting the semi-professional Glendale Farmers Base Ball Club for almost 50 years, from the 1900s until the 1950s. In the late 1940s and early 1950s it was also briefly called Ridgewood Park and Glen Ridge Park, as the park is between Glendale and Ridgewood. It was renovated in the early 1990s, and a

ribbon cutting ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly constructed location or the start of an event.

was hosted by mayor

Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani ( , ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and Disbarment, disbarred lawyer who served as the 107th mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney ...

, Queens Borough President Claire Shulman, and New York City parks commissioner Henry Stern on March 18, 1995.

References

External links

Mafera Park, NYC Parks
{{coord, 40.706827, -73.891306, display=title Parks in Queens, New York Nature reserves in New York (state) Glendale, Queens