Beacon’s South Avenue Park Rehabilitation Complete

By Jennifer L. Warren

BEACON – South Avenue Park has been a cherished part of Reuben Simmons’ life for over 30 years.

Whether it was spending endless hours running up and down its popular, outdoor, illuminated basketball courts, while honing his jump shot or layup skill set as a youth, pouring a similar amount of time into the growth of youth players now as an adult coach on those same courts, or hustling around the entire breadth of the Park, while passionately helping stage the Annual I am Beacon Back to School, late August Block Party on these beloved grounds, Simmons has witnessed its evolution over the years. Friday’s Rehabilitation Ribbon Cutting marked a priceless milestone for the community hub he holds close to his heart.

“I remember playing on these courts as a kid when it had a retaining wall made of wood, and now there are cement blocks there,” recalled the lifelong Beacon resident, Simmons, as he surveyed all of the recent upgrades. “Seeing it all now, really makes me see the difference.”

It’s a $893,000 game-changer refurbishment- the first since the 1990’s- that not only includes the re-landscaping of those failing retainer walls and regrading of areas alongside the courts, but the resurfacing and restriping of those basketball courts as well as nearby tennis and pickleball ones, new benches and tables inside the basketball courts, some added parking lot spaces, as well as the first-ever installation of a permanent rest room building, creatively adorned by Newburgh-based muralist, Joe Pimentel, along with some community members, featuring local, marine wildlife: turtles, a sturgeon, beaver and fish among the colorful creatures. Tree work, adding even more to the Park’s aesthetic appeal, is slated for a future date.

$150,000 of the close to $900,000 tab was made possible by a grant secured by local Assemblyman, Jonathan Jacobson. Breaking ground on May 19, the extensive, well-organized and run South Avenue Park Project undertaking was completed in just two months, a feat Jacobson deemed, “a tremendous job.”

“This Park is so important to the residents of Beacon; every time I come here the place is full of kids playing,” said Jacobson, as he addressed the crowd, which included many of the Project’s players. “It’s great what you have done, and I’m so happy and excited to deliver this money to Beacon, a City that always pulls together to make the most of any extra money I bring from Albany.”

That cohesive, arduous effort involved multiple City of Beacon Departments, each one intent on bringing critical upgrades to a place that serves as a cornerstone staple to so many of the City’s youth, reflecting a genuine, prioritized investment in their futures as well as the community as a whole.

“The Summer Basketball League here serves 200 kids, and it’s a home to so many children; also, there are active, vibrant tennis and pickleball courts, so there is a whole community that uses this Park,” explained Mark Price, Recreation Director of the City of Beacon, who served as the lead person overseeing the Project he referred to as the smoothest he has ever been involved with and one working with truly great people.” This will serve as a recreational hub for the neighborhood and City for many years to come.”

South Avenue Park’s rehabilitation adds to the growing list of City of Beacon parks (seven exist in all) which have received much-needed and appreciated upgrades. The recreational facilities’ refurbishment and overall investment in are prioritized goals City of Beacon Mayor, Lee Kyriacou-who resides around the corner from the South Avenue Park locale-has had since the beginning of his 2020 tenure.

“This and upgrades to other parks will be historic,” said Kyriacou, who thanked Jacobson, along with the many others involved in making this expedient and much embraced Project possible. “This is a place that really, really gets used, truly a neighborhood park.”