By JAMES CRAVEN
Staff Writer

NEW BRITAIN — For the several hundred children cavorting in the water fountains or playing basketball at the newly dedicated Willow Street Park, the city and state officials on hand were barely noticed.

Ten-year-old Angel Riveria was in awe of the multi-colored park setting that was different from anywhere he had played previously.

“I play in the parking lot,” he said, pointing to where he lived about a block away. “This is better.”

Angel also didn’t hesitate about where he would be spending the majority of his time at the new park.

“Playing basketball,” he said.

Nearly 10 years in the making, Parks Commission Chairman Richard Lorch called the park a “phenomenal place for kids in the area.”

“This is all for the kids,” he said. “Most of them have never had a park like this for themselves.”

Mayor Timothy Stewart, who with ceremonial scissors in hand, cut the ribbon to officially open the park said it was an example of partnership between the city and the neighborhood.

North Oak Revitalization Zone president Rich Marzi said the development of the park has been a neighborhood effort.

“This is a great thing and hopefully will be a step toward turning around the North Oak neighborhood,” Marzi said.

Also admiring the playing fields, playgrounds, bocce courts, shuffleboard courts and a life-size chess and checkerboard game was state Rep. John Geragosian.

“I’m not an expert in park design but I am the father of a 20-month-old and this is one of the nicest places to bring a child I’ve seen,” he said.

The park also boasts the first splash pad, an interactive water playground that saw good use on the park’s first day.

“I can’t believe the kids are playing in the water,” said recreation director Bill DeMaio. “Just wait till next summer.”

The opening ceremonies were capped by a performance of the New Britain High School Band.

The site was once polluted and the contaminants are believed to have come from a large junkyard and the leaking of some gasoline from underground tanks. Several bore holes in the area also showed concentrations of lead, but CMG Environmental, the company working with the city on the cleanup, made use of an emulsifier to bind lead in the soil. By doing so, the city reduced the cost of remediation and moving contaminated soil.

The city had approved a total of $5.3 million, some of it federal funding, last January to finish the park.

James Craven can be reached at jcraven@centralctcommunications.com or by calling (860) 225-4601, ext. 231.