At another playground, Madeline Natoli and Fanny Boneh came across a zip line and were impressed by how popular it was. When they helped design the new playground at the Park at East Hills, they chose two side-by-side lines over one, so children could race each other without waiting in a long line. Long Island Press reported that the pair spent nearly two years interviewing vendors, visiting other playgrounds, testing equipment and reviewing multiple designs before they settled on a layout.
For two decades the Park at East Hills belonged to one man's plan. Its newest piece came from parents who brought their own kids there, and it opened this fall, just as that man was preparing to step down.
A Fenced Military Site, a $3.2 Million Purchase, and Twenty Years
The park didn't start as parkland. According to the Village of East Hills, the land was the former Roslyn Air National Guard Station, a military installation surrounded by razor wire that the village describes as an eyesore in the middle of the community. The village bought the property from the United States Air Force in 2000 for $3.2 million. It then issued about $17 million in bonds to rebuild it.
Construction began in 2004 and finished in 2006, and the village says it came in on time and under budget. Today the village values the 50-acre complex at well over $50 million. It includes a 12,000-square-foot pool, a 100-foot water slide, tennis and pickleball courts, a 300-foot sledding hill, sports fields, a fitness facility, dog parks, a theater and a 13,000-square-foot Village Hall.
Mayor Michael Koblenz led that purchase and that rebuild. On Saturday, September 5, 2026, the village marked the park's 20th anniversary with a Polynesian-themed "A Park Paradise" celebration, which included a luau show with fire and hula dancers and a limbo contest. The event honored Koblenz for creating the park. The village had also announced that Koblenz would step down on October 23, 2026, after 32 years as its highest elected official, and hand the office to Deputy Mayor Brian Meyerson.
That timing explains why the playground stands out. It's the first big addition to the park that will be enjoyed mostly under a new mayor, and it was shaped largely by residents.
The Kiddie Pool Nobody Used Became the Centerpiece
The playground went into a space the park had stopped using. According to Long Island Press, the area once held a kiddie pool that was closed after it became impractical, and the spot sat vacant afterward. Instead of leaving it empty, village officials built the new playground around it. Park Director Dave Squillante said the 14-foot climbing tree at its center began as an idea for a prominent feature where the old pool used to be.
The village worked with GameTime and MRC Recreation on the build, and village officials and parents took part throughout the design process. Several of the pieces were chosen for a specific reason.
| Feature | The problem it was chosen to solve |
|---|---|
| Double zip line | One zip line means a long line; two let kids race |
| Four-person seesaw | More children can use it at once without waiting |
| Accessible swing | Gives children of different abilities a way to play |
| Communication board | Lets children who have trouble expressing themselves point to letters and symbols |
| 14-foot climbing tree | Gives the old kiddie pool site a focal point |
| Recirculating waterfall | A second centerpiece, developed with Squillante's input |
An animal theme runs through the whole space, with sculptures of animals found in or associated with nature. The committee members said they spent a lot of time on safety, including equipment heights, layout, and how many children could use each feature at once.
The money came from a bond. At its Tuesday, March 10 meeting, the Board of Trustees approved borrowing up to $2.5 million for the playground, as Long Island Press reported. Koblenz said the borrowing would not raise village taxes because earlier bonds had been paid off, which freed up room in the budget. At that point, Trustee Emmanuel Zuckerman expected construction to start in early April and finish by mid-July.
Opened Before It Was Finished, on Purpose
The ribbon was cut in October, and the playground is open to residents, but it isn't complete. According to the Long Island Press report, more trees will be planted for shade, and more animals are expected to be added to the waterfall feature. Squillante said the village opened the playground before every detail was finished because the community had been patient while the project was in development.
The members of the East Hills Friends in the Park Committee who cut the ribbon alongside the trustees described the project as personal. Boneh co-chairs the committee and Natoli is a member, and both had brought their own children to the old playground. Natoli summed up the effort in Long Island Press:
"The park's such a big part of East Hills. Having a state-of-the-art playground was really so important to us for us and for our kids."
The original park was completed in one push between 2004 and 2006. The playground will keep filling in after opening, as the shade trees go in and more animals arrive at the waterfall. A child who tries the climbing tree this October will find a slightly different playground next summer.
How the Park Runs Once the Pool Season Ends
The playground opened late in the outdoor season, so for many families the next big draw is Snow Mountain, the 300-foot sledding hill. Under the village's Park at East Hills code, the hill opens only when snow conditions are good enough. Hours depend on the day:
- Weekdays when school is in session: 3:00 p.m. to dusk
- Snow days when school is closed, weekends and holidays: 10:00 a.m. to dusk
When the hill is open, its rules are short and specific:
- Children under 13 need adult supervision at all times.
- Everyone follows the directions of the attendants on duty.
- Sledders walk back up using the walkway along the edge of Snow Mountain.
- Sledding is not allowed anywhere else in the park.
Access works the same in winter as in summer. Use of the park is generally limited to residents and their guests. Residents, nannies and caregivers need a valid park identification card, though infants are exempt. To get a card, residents submit an application along with the matching homeowner, permanent-resident or tenant affidavit through the village's park card page.
If you're hosting family over the holidays, guest passes matter. Each household gets 10 free guest passes per calendar year. After that, passes cost $18 per adult and $7.50 per child on weekdays, and $35 per adult and $15 per child on weekends and holidays. Seniors pay the child rate. Guests over age two need a pass and must be with an adult cardholder, and no more than six guests per residence may use the park on any given day.
One more change for court regulars: the village homepage says resident tennis and pickleball reservations now run on a new system, and residents need to create a new login.
What Meyerson Has Already Put on the List
The playground is likely only the first resident-facing project of the new administration. In an August interview with Long Island Press, Meyerson listed the playground and a redesign of the village theater as projects underway or nearing completion. He said the theater redesign is meant to accommodate larger events.
The current park code shows why. It treats the Village Theatre as a rental venue that a resident sponsors, with a maximum of 72 seated guests and an 11 p.m. closing time. Back in March, trustees said a bond for theater renovations and another for a new air-conditioning system at Village Hall might come up at a future meeting.
Meyerson's other stated priorities go beyond the park. He said he plans to keep property taxes frozen without cutting services, to pursue state and federal grants, and to look for funding to repair parts of Glen Cove Road that he called in disrepair. He also said he wants residents to feel comfortable bringing ideas directly to him, and he joked that he might give out his cellphone number.
The playground shows what that kind of resident input can produce. Two parents visited other playgrounds, brought back what they saw, and helped turn an empty pool site into the newest centerpiece of a park that began as a fenced military station. Meyerson told Long Island Press that his goal is to find ways to improve the village as residents' needs change, not simply to preserve what Koblenz built.
At Bona Fide Fine Homes & Estates, we pay attention to the kind of work the village did with that old kiddie pool, where a space nobody used becomes the reason people show up. Our in-house restoration team brings the same thinking to homes in East Hills before they go to market. If you live near the Park and are starting to think about your next move, Schedule a List & Launch Consultation and we'll walk your home with you to find what's worth reworking.
