Ralph Demarco Park

Ralph Demarco Park is a 5.82-acre waterfront park along Shore Boulevard in Astoria, Queens, running between Ditmars Boulevard and 20th Avenue on the eastern shore of the East River, just north of Astoria Park. Named for Ralph DeMarco, a longtime Queens community and political leader who championed the creation of a waterfront park here, it offers a narrow ribbon of paths, lawns, and sweeping river views.

The park faces the East River across the Hell Gate strait, with views of Manhattan's Upper East Side and the Robert F. Kennedy (Triborough) Bridge arching overhead. Its paths and seating connect to those of the adjacent Astoria Park, extending the neighborhood's waterfront promenade.

Ralph DeMarco (1908-1977) was born in Calabria, Italy, and immigrated to Astoria as a child. A district leader and Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Sanitation, he spent years pressing for an attractive public waterfront; he died before the park was completed, and it was dedicated in his honor in 1980.

Astoria is one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the city, long shaped by Greek, Italian, and more recent immigrant communities. The park's narrow waterfront setting, lined with weeping willows, provides a quiet place to walk and take in the river.

Ralph Demarco Park fulfills its namesake's vision of an open, welcoming East River shoreline, giving Astoria residents direct access to the water and one of the finest skyline views in the borough.