As Temperatures Rise, Sunset Park Fountains Go Dry

With highs reaching 86°F during the first week of June, the water fountains at Sunset Park were turned off from at least Thursday, June 5, through Saturday, June 7.

At least one Parks Department worker was caught off guard when he discovered the fountains weren't working. “I had no idea these fountains weren’t running,” he said, promising to look into the matter.

Some children have taken to asking strangers for money to buy water from the park vendors. "None of the water fountains are working," responded one child when asked why he simply didn't use the fountains.

Although the splash pad on the north side of the Sunset Park Recreation Center—and the water fountain inside it—remained operational, the other fountains throughout the park were out of service.

The issue was ultimately traced to nearby construction at 7th Avenue and 44th Street, where the Department of Design and Construction (DDC) is working on expanding the crosswalk to make it safer for students at P.S. 169.

According to private contractors working with the DDC, they had shut off a water line going to the park on June 6 as part of the project. However, they were surprised to learn days later that service to the park’s fountains had not yet been restored.

“A lot of people, a lot of kids rely on those fountains,” said one concerned parent, “especially as it starts to get hotter.