The “Park Behind Tilda’s” Bakery has a long history. It was created through a stewardship agreement with the NY State DEC and local business owners over 20 years ago. The park is located on a small part of a large parcel of NY State property called the Rocky Point Pine Barrens State Forest.
The park does not receive any funding from the Town of Brookhaven or NY State DEC. It is solely reliant on donations from local business owners and community members to maintain the landscaping and required insurance for the park to exist. Over the years, various improvements were made to the park, utilizing grant opportunities and donations, to include a large playground structure, benches, trash cans, exercise trails, fencing, and a large pavilion.
Two years ago (2019), the local business owners who maintained the park asked the Rocky Point Civic Association to take over the stewardship agreement with the NYS DEC. Since that time, the Rocky Point Civic Association has been working to make repairs and improvements to the park and address any potential safety issues. The Rocky Point Sound Beach Chamber of Commerce has generously agreed to pay for the annual insurance policy for the park and the bi-weekly lawn maintenance. This continues the long-standing dedication of local business owners, supporting the park, for the community to enjoy.
In the Spring of 2020, the Civic Association requested annual plants from the Brookhaven Highway Dept. to beautify the park. Many thanks to Dan Losquadro for approving the request and April Perry, at the Holtsville Ecology Site for providing the flats. The addition of these flowers welcomes visitors to the park.
In The Works: New Pollinator Garden
Summer 2020 will mark the beginning of a new Pollinator Garden in the playground area. Working with local Girl Scout Troop 604, we will be planting milkweed, which is the host plant for Monarch butterflies. Milkweed varieties are the only plants Monarchs lay eggs on, and they are the required diet of Monarch caterpillars. Milkweed also supports a large variety of other pollinators including bees, flies, wasps, and milkweed bugs.
Scheduled Park Clean Up Days:
We will be scheduling regular park clean up days and are looking for community members to volunteer their time to help keep the park clean and make improvements. Clean ups will include removing garbage from the park and parking lots, clipping vines, some weeding, etc. Due to Covid-19, we will maintain social distancing in the park and volunteers will need to bring their own pruning shears if they are pruning. Gardening knowledge is helpful, but not required. We will provide guidance for the work that needs to be done. In addition, there is a Volunteer Agreement that must be signed before anyone does volunteer work at the park. This is a legal requirement from the NYS DEC.
If you’d like to become a volunteer at the park, please email rppark11778@gmail.com
