1980 Central Park Conservancy Founded

Playgrounds, like the rest of the Park, are in a state of serious deterioration. The Central Park Conservancy begins to focus on restoring and rebuilding the Park as a whole and working on playgrounds as the need and opportunity align.

“The condition of Central Park at the time of the formation of the Administrator’s Office and the Conservancy was truly shocking. Once-green lawns were bare dusty hardpan, slopes were gullied with erosion, and water bodies silted and choked with weedy vegetation. Broken benches and clogged catch basins lined every path. Years of graffiti scrawlings covered almost every available stone, brick and wood surface.”

Rebuilding Central Park: A Management and Restoration Plan, 1984