Red Hook Park

Red Hook Park is a 9.5-acre park in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, providing athletic facilities and recreation space for one of the borough's most geographically isolated communities. The park includes a swimming pool, playing fields, basketball courts, and a recreation center.

Red Hook's isolation, cut off from the rest of Brooklyn by the Gowanus Expressway and the former industrial waterfront, has given the neighborhood a distinctive character. The Red Hook Houses, one of the largest public housing developments in Brooklyn, are the park's primary constituency, and the park serves as the athletic heart of this tight-knit community.

The park's swimming pool is one of the WPA-era pools built under Robert Moses in 1936, and it remains one of the most important summer amenities in a neighborhood that lacks many of the commercial recreation options available in more prosperous areas. The pool's free admission makes it accessible to all Red Hook families.

Red Hook Park is also famous for its food vendors, particularly the Red Hook Ball Fields food vendors who set up along the park's perimeter during summer weekends. The vendors, many originally from Latin American countries, serve authentic pupusas, tacos, huaraches, and other dishes that have drawn food enthusiasts from across the city.

Red Hook Park serves the essential function of providing free, high-quality recreation in a community that has historically been underserved by both public and private investment. The park's athletic facilities, pool, and community programming provide the infrastructure of daily life for Red Hook's families.