QUEENS — Flushing Meadows-Corona Park will finally get a conservancy to begin distribution of $10 million from the United States Tennis Association for park upkeep, DNAinfo New York has learned.
Officials will unveil the details of the plan, including the board's layout and its members, at the park next week, according to sources briefed on the plan.
The USTA agreed in 2013 to pay $10.05 million to the city in exchange for its approved expansion within the park, with roughly half going to a newly-formed conservancy and the rest going to fix a park road.
But the money has been in limbo while Mayor Bill de Blasio worked on the formation of the board — which was supposed to have been set up earlier this year.
The deal prohibited the USTA from distributing any of the funds until the alliance was formed, USTA spokesman Chris Widmaier said.
He confirmed the alliance had now been formed, and would soon figure out how to distribute the funds.
Flushing Meadows-Corona Park is the borough's largest greenspace, but until now has lacked the public-private partnership found in other parks its size, including Central Park and Prospect Park.
It's also home to many privately-run spaces, like the USTA stadiums and Citi Field.
A spokeswoman for Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras-Copeland, who negotiated the deal for more money for the park, said the councilwoman hoped the conservancy board would be "a balanced group of representatives that will guard the interest of the public and everyone who has a stake in the park."
The mayor's office and the Parks Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment
