Irving Square Park

A crowded, neighborhood playground in Bushwick

Overall Score

Five stars out of fiveFour stars out of fiveThree stars out of fiveTwo Stars out of fiveOne Star out of five

Rat-O-Meter

Rat-o-meter: five rats out of fiveRat-o-meter: four rats out of fiveRat-o-meter: three rats out of fiveRat-o-meter: two rats out of fiveRat-o-meter: one rat out of five
Official NYC Parks Website
Brooklyn
Knickerbocker Ave and Weirfield St

Features

Neighborhood
Bathrooms
No
Yes
, But NEARBY
Shade:
No
Yes
Water feature:
No
Yes
Sandbox:
No
Yes
Drinking Fountain
No
Yes
Additional DETAILS BELOW

Reviews

Not Your Nanny's Review

A serviceable spot in a crowded neighborhood.

It feels a little rundown and neglected, as does the rest of the park, but it’s a totally fine option if you’re near it. There is a cool climbing wall / castle structure.

Overall the space just isn’t big enough for the amount of kids who live right near it, even when there aren’t that many humans it feels crowded.

Playground Papa's Review

Irving Park always feels a little bit neglected, between uncut grass and slightly rundown everything. The playground is no exception. 

It's hard to imagine a playground or a park of this nature in Park Slope or the Upper West Side would be allowed to deteriorate like this, but perhaps it's not surprising the Parks Department allocates resources based on a neighborhood's medium income. 

The playground is covered by old trees, including one right in the center of it, but that also means the leaves pile up here. They were so bad one year that the drain in the splash pad was clogged, leaving behind a big mud puddle. And while these are quite beautiful, they only provide a limited amount of shad coverage. 

We've often met up with friends here, and the kids inevitably found their way to the puddles left behind by bad drainage and leaky drinking fountains. 

The small climbing wall leads to a little tower the kids like to stand on top of and wave from. But otherwise the equipment is kind of compact and not all that interesting. There are a lot more children than the playground can accommodate. 

We've also had some bumped heads here. I don't know if its because the playground equipment has higher platforms, but a few times the kids ended up running into the equipment while underneath it.

Bruno's Review

About the Playground

Named for the writer Washington Irving, this full-block park brings a bit of green to the area. The playground was moved within the playground to its current location in 1989 with the last renovation in 2008.

Additional Features

Equipment

Slides:
Yes
No
Tic Tac Toe:
No
Yes
Toddler Swings:
No
Yes
Belt Swings:
No
Yes
CHIMES / Drums:
No
Yes
Tunnel:
No
Yes
PicNic Tables:
No
Yes
Suspension Bridge:
No
Yes

Climbing equipment

LaDDERS:
No
Yes
CLIMBING WALL:
No
Yes
ROPE:
No
Yes
STAIRS:
No
Yes
RAMP:
No
Yes
Monkey Bars:
No
Yes
Chain Ladder:
No
Yes
Weird Climbing Thing:
No
Yes

Accessibility

Sensory Panels:
No
Yes
Other Sensory Equipment:
No
Yes
Accessible Swing:
No
Yes
Balance Beam:
No
Yes
RAMP:
No
Yes
Last updated:
October 25, 2023

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