Elmont Road Park

A reinvigorated community hub

During the 1940s and 1950s, Elmont Road was frequented by politicians and local officials who walked the street, who had little regard for the park.

Now, Elmont Road to the north is a hub of local businesses. To its south, the community park. The road is a connector to other major roads within the hamlet.

The Town of Hempstead Park became the community's recreational site in the late 1990s and early 2000s when folks would gather to play basketball, football and other games.

Once a sump — where local children had drowned during the 1940s and '50s — it had been referred to in those days as a “glorified pond.” It fell into disrepair.

Finally, the community joined forces and pushed for restoration, which began in July 2021, culminating with the park being reopened this past June after a $3 million renovation project.

Soggy fields and cracked pavement were replaced with a multi-use sports field, refurbished basketball and handball courts. There is now a perimeter walking path, an adult fitness area, new playgrounds and a new water play area for the kids.

Refurbishment of the park energized the community. Elmont Cardinal Football is scheduling home games. Fenol Larock, a 2020 graduate of Elmont Memorial High School, began planning a basketball tournament to be held at the facility.

Sadly, Larock was unable to come to terms with the Town of Hempstead to host the event. The town requested he reduce the size of the basketball tournament since spectators were

anticipated to come out in droves. Clearly the heartbeat of Elmont was strong.

Those championing the tournament felt rejected by the town, but that did not deter Larock, who said he loves the Elmont community and will continue to work to support local children in the future. “It would be best to stay in the community and to help and grow,” he said, urging young folks to remain in Elmont and help build it up.

Although Larock never had a chance to run his tournament, he continues to press on to better his community. Elmont Road Park only has one direction: forward. Brian Pfail

Top: The monkey bars are fun spot for the kids.

Middle: The slides get a lot of attention from youngsters at the park.

Bottom: Water works are a great way to cool off.