Exploring Boro ‘Parks’: Dyker Beach Park

By Y.M. Lowy

In our summer series Exploring Boro ‘Parks’, BoroPark24 is visiting parks close to the neighborhood that offer a space to breathe, move, and share moments with family. Each week, we’ll share a short look at a nearby park’s past and what makes it worth a visit today.

Dyker Beach Park dates back to 1895 when the City of Brooklyn began gathering marshland once known as common land belonging to the Canarsee Indians and early Dutch settlers to transform it into public green space. The area slowly expanded into its current form by 1934.

Today, Dyker Beach Park spans 216 acres and sits beneath the Verrazzano Narrows Bridge. At its heart is the public 18-hole golf course, one of the oldest in the country, now privately managed. The park also offers a rich mix of recreational amenities: baseball, football, and soccer fields; tennis, basketball, handball, and bocce courts; spray showers; playgrounds; restrooms; and even free junior golf instruction for kids through the CityParks Junior Golf Center.

A local highlight is Dyker Playground, which features colorful play equipment, benches, picnic tables, a spray shower, and courts, making it a favorite gathering spot for families and neighborhood organizations.

The park is also on the move. In 2023, work began on a $7 million renovation to revamp multipurpose play surfaces and the basketball courts. Green infrastructure was incorporated to improve drainage and manage stormwater, an upgrade long requested by the community. A separate project earlier upgraded a synthetic turf soccer field, complete with bleachers and a drinking fountain.

Stay with us as we continue exploring more parks in the weeks ahead.

photos: Zevi Klein