The Town of Huntington is temporarily re-opening the Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo Memorial Spray Park at Elwood Park due to the heat wave the area is currently experiencing.
Huntington officials announced the spray park will be open Sept. 6 and 7, from noon to 6 p.m. The hours for the week starting Sept. 10 will be determined based on the weather. Town of Huntington beaches will remain closed due to a lack of available lifeguard staffing, according a statement from the town.
The park is 4,900 square feet in area with 2,500 square feet of active play features, according to town Civil Engineer Ed Parrish, the project manager for the spray park. Parrish added that the spray pad water runoff will be collected and reused for field irrigation at Elwood Park.
The interactive spray park contains multiple water features, including several button- activated water jets, water spraying hoops and overhead buckets that fill up and dump down onto children’s heads. The largest bucket that hangs several meters off the ground is labeled with big block letters spelling “NYPD.”
The spray park, located at Elwood Park on Cuba Hill Road in Elwood, is open to residents with Resident Recreation Photo ID Cards (children under 13 years old will be able to use the spray park if accompanying parent/guardian shows a Resident Recreation Photo ID Card – exception only for those who have Picnic Permits for that day), Non-residents may only enter the spray park if they are accompanied by a resident with a Resident Recreation Photo ID Card.
It was no sweat for the Town of Huntington officials to open their first interactive spray water park July 11 to the sound of children laughing and playing in the summer heat.
The Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo Memorial Spray Park, located along Cuba Hill Road in Elwood Park, isdedicated to Huntington native and fallen New York City police Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo whose family attended the park’s opening.
“Happiness was something that Paul brought to everyone he met,” Tuozzolo’s wife, Lisa, said. “Even though the smiles don’t make up for all the heartbreak that my family and I have suffered, it does prove just how much Paul did and how much he meant to his fellow officers and his community.”
““Happiness was something that Paul brought to everyone he met.”
– Lisa Tuozzolo
The interactive spray park contains multiple water features, including several button- activated water jets, water spraying hoops and overhead buckets that fill up and dump down onto children’s heads. The largest bucket that hangs several meters off the ground is labeled with big block letters spelling “NYPD.”
A 19-year veteran of the NYPD, Tuozzolo was working for the 43rd Precinct in the Soundview section of the Bronx in November 2016 when he was shot and killed responding to what was initially reported as a home
invasion, and later found to be a domestic incident. A police dispatcher told responding officers that a man who had broken into the home was fleeing in a car, which Tuozzolo swiftly tracked down. Upon approaching the vehicle, the suspect shot Tuozzolo, who later died of his injuries.
“The Sergeant made the ultimate sacrifice, he warned other officers of the same fate,” Supervisor Chad Lupinacci (R) said. “But let’s not reflect on how he died, but on how he lived. He believed in service and love for the community.”
The police officer is survived by his wife and two young sons Austin and Joseph. The family was strongly involved with the initial proposal for the park and later its design, according to former Huntington
Supervisor Frank Petrone (D) when the project was first announced in September 2017.
“This is absolutely fantastic — one of the best dedications I’ve ever seen,” Terry Monahan, NYPD’s chief of department, said. “To have this in his hometown really means something.”
“This is absolutely fantastic — one of the best dedications I’ve ever seen.”
– Terry Monahan
The park is 4,900 square feet in area with 2,500 square feet of active play features, according to town Civil Engineer Ed Parrish, the project manager for the spray park. Parrish added that the spray pad water runoff will be collected and reused for field irrigation at Elwood Park.
Right up until a week before the park opened last minute touches were being added, including the gate’s memorial trellis, which was installed July 5. Town spokesperson Lauren Lembo said that the project was
finished on schedule, but a new sanitary system for the park is expected to be finished by spring 2019.
Ridge-based Laser Industries Inc. and its subcontractors were paid approximately $610,000 to build the spray park, which included installing the new waterlines, spray features, concrete and safety features as well as the custom park benches and memorial trellis. Town of Huntington employees were paid $50,000 to install a new 4-inch water line into the park as well as the sprinkler system, sidewalk and fencing.
Parrish said that trained staff are being provided with first aid equipment and umbrellas to monitor the kids at play.
Only children age 13 or younger are allowed to use the spray park. Parents or guardians must show a Resident Recreation Photo ID or that day’s picnic permit to gain access to the park. Official hours will be 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., but with this year’s planned playground camp being held at Elwood Park, it will be open to the public from Monday through Friday, 12:30 to 8 p.m. now through Aug. 10.
Huntington Supervisor Chad Lupinacci said construction scheduled to begin in March
Huntington’s first interactive water park is one step closer to construction with the approval of town funding.
Huntington Town Board unanimously voted to appropriate $230,000 for the construction and installation of a spray park in honor of fallen New York City police Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo within Elwood Park at their Feb. 6 meeting.
“It’s important that we are recognizing a wonderful family and an officer who died in the line of duty who has left behind two young children who will no doubt be using the spray park,” Councilman Mark Cuthbertson (D) said. “It’s a nice way to remember Officer Tuozzolo.”
Huntington resident Tuozzolo, 41, was working for the 43rd Precinct in the Soundview section of the Bronx in November 2016 when he was shot and killed responding to what was reported as a home invasion, but later turned out to be a domestic incident. A police dispatcher told responding officers that a man who had broken into the home was fleeing in a car, which Tuozzolo swiftly tracked down. Upon approaching the vehicle, the suspect opened fire and shot Tuozzolo who later died of his injuries.
“It’s a very fitting way to remember the sacrifices of Sgt. Tuozzollo who lost his life back in 2016,” Supervisor Chad Lupinacci (R) said. “It’s a real tribute to his life, legacy and the work he did on behalf of protecting people and the community, making sure public safety was there to help.”
The police officer is survived by his wife, Lisa, and two young sons, Austin and Joseph.
“The two most important children in his life were his sons, Austin and Joseph, and the moment he walked through the doorway upon returning from work, our home lit up as bright as the sun from the smiles on everyone’s faces,” Lisa Tuozzolo said, at the September 2017 unveiling of the spray park plans. “[The] dedication is a fitting tribute to the devotion he had toward his children and I know that he is smiling down with great pride, knowing that his boys will have laughter and smiles at this spray park.”
The spray park is set to cover a 2,500-square-foot area with
approximately 1,600 square feet of active play features that will be purchased from playground equipment manufacturer
Waterplay Solutions. Its equipment will include a shade structure, six park benches, a 4-foot vinyl-coated chain-link fence and a memorial trellis naming the park.
The preliminary estimated cost of the project is $450,000. The town board’s Feb. 6 action appropriated $230,000 from the Parks and Recreation Capital Improvement Reserve Fund, which will not incur any additional debt service payments. Other sources of funding will include using money paid by the developer of The Seasons at Elwood as part of the community benefits agreement with the town.
Lupinacci said the town remains on track with its initial plans to break ground on construction of the spray park in March 2018. It is slated to be the first interactive water park completed in the Town of Huntington, with second to be built at the James D. Conte Community Center in Huntington Station