Central Park

==History==
[[File:Central Park Bolt.jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=Randel's surveying bolt driven into rock|Randel's surveying bolt]]
===Planning===
Between 1821 and 1855, New York City's population nearly quadrupled. As the city expanded northward up [[Manhattan]], people were drawn to the few existing open spaces, mainly cemeteries, for passive recreation. These were seen as escapes from the noise and chaotic life in the city, which at the time was almost entirely centered on [[Lower Manhattan]].{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=23, 25}} The [[Commissioners' Plan of 1811]], the outline for Manhattan's modern street grid, included several smaller open spaces but not Central Park.{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=9}} As such, John Randel Jr. had surveyed the grounds for the construction of intersections within the modern-day park site. The only remaining surveying bolt from his survey is embedded in a rock north of the present Dairy and the 66th&nbsp;Street transverse, marking the location where West 65th&nbsp;Street would have intersected [[Sixth Avenue]].{{sfn|Todd|1982|p=73}}<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/unearthing-the-city-grid-that-would-have-been-in-central-park|title=Unearthing the City Grid That Would Have Been in Central Park|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|date=January 8, 2016|access-date=March 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190706141925/https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/unearthing-the-city-grid-that-would-have-been-in-central-park|archive-date=July 6, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Site====
[[File:Map of Seneca Village.jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=Egbert Viele's survey of Central Park |Map of the former [[Seneca Village]] from [[Egbert Ludovicus Viele|Viele]]'s survey for Central Park]]
By the 1840s, members of the city's elite were publicly calling for the construction of a new large park in Manhattan.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=23, 25}}<ref name="Reynolds pp. 320-321">{{harvnb|Reynolds|1994|ps=.|pp=320–321}}</ref> At the time, Manhattan's seventeen squares comprised a combined {{Convert|165|acre|ha|abbr=}} of land, the largest of which was the {{Convert|10|acre|ha|0|abbr=|adj=on}} [[The Battery (Manhattan)|Battery Park]] at Manhattan island's southern tip.{{sfn|Rosenzweig| Blackmar|1992|pp=18–19}} These plans were endorsed in 1844 by ''[[New York Post|New York Evening Post]]'' editor [[William Cullen Bryant]], and in 1851 by [[Andrew Jackson Downing]], one of the first American landscape designers.<ref name="Reynolds pp. 320-321" />{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=11–12}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=15, 29–30}}

Mayor [[Ambrose Kingsland]], in a message to the [[New York City Common Council]] on May 5, 1851, set forth the necessity and benefits of a large new park and proposed the council move to create such a park. Kingsland's proposal was referred to the council's Committee of Lands, which endorsed the proposal. The committee chose [[Jones's Wood]], a {{Convert|160|acre|ha|abbr=|adj=on}} tract of land between 66th&nbsp;and 75th&nbsp;streets on the Upper East Side, as the park's site, as Bryant had advocated for Jones Wood. The acquisition was controversial because of its location, small size relative to other potential uptown tracts, and cost.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W0AbAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA458|title=Documents of the Assembly of the State of New York|last=New York State Assembly|year=1911|volume=29|pages=451–453|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190405050610/https://books.google.com/books?id=W0AbAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA458|archive-date=April 5, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Taylor|2009|p=258}}{{sfn|Berman|2003|p=17}} A bill to acquire Jones's Wood was invalidated as unconstitutional,{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=45}}{{sfn|Taylor|2009|p=259}} so attention turned to a second site: a {{convert|750|acre|ha|adj=on}} area known as "Central Park", bounded by 59th&nbsp;and 106th&nbsp;streets between Fifth and Eighth avenues.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=45}}{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=12, 14}} [[Croton Aqueduct]] Board president Nicholas Dean, who proposed the Central Park site, chose it because the Croton Aqueduct's {{Convert|35|acre|ha|abbr=|adj=on}}, {{Convert|150|e6gal|e6L|abbr=|adj=on}} collecting reservoir would be in the geographical center.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=45}}{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=12, 14}} In July 1853, the New York State Legislature passed the Central Park Act, authorizing the purchase of the present-day site of Central Park.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=16}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=51–53}}

The board of land commissioners conducted property assessments on more than 34,000 lots in the area,{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=81–83}} completing them by July 1855.{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=17}} While the assessments were ongoing, proposals to downsize the plans were vetoed by mayor [[Fernando Wood]].{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=17}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=55–56}}{{sfn|Taylor|2009|pp=261–262}} At the time, the site was occupied by free black people and Irish immigrants who had developed a property-owning community there since 1825.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/07/nyregion/uncovering-the-ruins-of-new-yorks-first-free-black-settlement.html |title=Uncovering the Ruins of an Early Black Settlement in New York|last=Williams|first=Keith|date=February 7, 2018|work=The New York Times|access-date=March 31, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190331042658/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/07/nyregion/uncovering-the-ruins-of-new-yorks-first-free-black-settlement.html|archive-date=March 31, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/manhattan/seneca-village-black-town-razed-central-park-article-1.2639611|title=A look at Seneca Village, the early black settlement obliterated by the creation of Central Park |last=Blakinger|first=Keri|date=May 17, 2016|work=New York Daily News|access-date=March 31, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160518101320/https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/manhattan/seneca-village-black-town-razed-central-park-article-1.2639611|archive-date=May 18, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Most of the Central Park site's residents lived in small villages, such as Pigtown;{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=73–74}}<ref>{{cite magazine |date=1903|editor-last=Rines|editor-first=George Edwin|title=Central City – Central Park|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h2lMAAAAMAAJ&pg=PT388|publisher=The Americana Company|volume=4|journal=The Encyclopedia Americana |editor-last2=Beach|editor-first2=Frederick Converse}}</ref> [[Seneca Village]];<ref name="Martin 1997">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/01/31/arts/a-village-dies-a-park-is-born.html |title=A Village Dies, A Park Is Born |last=Martin|first=Douglas|date=January 31, 1997|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170426202041/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/01/31/arts/a-village-dies-a-park-is-born.html|archive-date=April 26, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> or in the school and convent at [[College of Mount Saint Vincent|Mount St. Vincent's Academy]].{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=89–90}} Clearing began shortly after the land commission's report was released in October 1855,{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=81–83}}<ref>{{Cite news|title=The Central Park—The Assessment Completed |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1855/10/04/archives/the-central-parkthe-assessment-completed.html |date=October 4, 1855|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 1, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401013259/https://www.nytimes.com/1855/10/04/archives/the-central-parkthe-assessment-completed.html|archive-date=April 1, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and approximately 1,600 residents were evicted under [[eminent domain]].<ref name="Martin 1997"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Seneca Village |url=http://maap.columbia.edu/place/32.html|publisher=[[Columbia University]]|access-date=September 17, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222051213/http://maap.columbia.edu/place/32.html|archive-date=February 22, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Berman|2003|p=19}} Though supporters claimed that the park would cost just $1.7&nbsp;million,{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=46–47}} the total cost of the land ended up being $7.39&nbsp;million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|7390000|1855|r=0}}}} in {{Inflation-year|USD}}), more than the price that [[Alaska Purchase|the United States would pay for Alaska]] a few years later.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=17}}<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.echonyc.com/~parks/books/bridges.html |title=Bridges of Central Park |last1=Reed|first1=Henry Hope|last2=McGee|first2=Robert M.|last3=Mipaas |first3=Esther|date=1990|publisher=Greensward Foundation |isbn=978-0-93131-106-2|access-date=May 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170913214334/http://www.echonyc.com/~parks/books/bridges.html |archive-date=September 13, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Treaty with Russia for the Purchase of Alaska |publisher=Library of Congress|url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/Alaska.html |access-date=August 30, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329025653/http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/Alaska.html |archive-date=March 29, 2015}}</ref>

==== Design contest ====
In June 1856, Fernando Wood appointed a "consulting board" of seven people, headed by author [[Washington Irving]], to inspire public confidence in the proposed development.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=96–97}}{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=18}} Wood hired military engineer [[Egbert Ludovicus Viele]] as the park's chief engineer, tasking him with a topographical survey of the site.{{sfn|Berman|2003|p=21}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=100–101}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/clip/23560870/|title=General Egbert E. Viele|date=April 23, 1902|work=[[Brooklyn Daily Eagle]]|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=3|via=Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com}}</ref> The following April, the state legislature passed a bill to authorize the appointment of four [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] and seven [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] commissioners,{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=96–97}}{{sfn|Berman|2003|p=20}} who had exclusive control over the planning and construction process.{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1858|loc=PDF pp. 8–12}}<ref name="NYS-1911"/><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1860/03/13/archives/the-central-park-report-of-the-commissioners-of-the-central-park-in.html |title=The Central Park; Report of the Commissioners of the Central Park in Reply to the Inquiries of the State Senate|date=March 13, 1860|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 4, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190404170137/https://www.nytimes.com/1860/03/13/archives/the-central-park-report-of-the-commissioners-of-the-central-park-in.html|archive-date=April 4, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Though Viele had already devised a plan for the park,{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=18}} the commissioners disregarded it and retained him to complete only the topographical surveys.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=102–103}}{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=20}} The Central Park Commission began hosting a landscape design contest shortly after its creation.{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=20}}{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=24–25}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=111–112}} The commission specified that each entry contain extremely detailed specifications, as mandated by the consulting board.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=111–112}}{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=21}}{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1858|loc=PDF pp. 29–30}} Thirty-three firms or organizations submitted plans.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=111–112}}{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=21}}

In April 1858, the park commissioners selected [[Frederick Law Olmsted]] and [[Calvert Vaux]]'s "Greensward Plan" as the winning design.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1858/04/30/archives/the-central-park-plans.html |title=The Central Park Plans|date=April 30, 1858|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 1, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401013252/https://www.nytimes.com/1858/04/30/archives/the-central-park-plans.html|archive-date=April 1, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=117–120}}{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=23–24}} Three other plans were designated as runners-up and featured in a city exhibit.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=117–120}}<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1858/05/13/archives/the-central-park-exhibition-of-the-unsuccessful-plans-for-the.html |title=The Central Park; Exhibition of the Unsuccessful Plans for the Central Park|date=May 13, 1858|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 1, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401013254/https://www.nytimes.com/1858/05/13/archives/the-central-park-exhibition-of-the-unsuccessful-plans-for-the.html|archive-date=April 1, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Unlike many of the other designs, which effectively integrated Central Park with the surrounding city, Olmsted and Vaux's proposal introduced clear separations with sunken transverse roadways.<ref name="Reynolds p. 321">{{harvnb|Reynolds|1994|ps=.|p=321}}</ref>{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=130–135}} The plan eschewed symmetry, instead opting for a more picturesque design.<ref name="Reynolds p. 321" />{{sfn|Scobey|2002|p=20}} It was influenced by the pastoral ideals of landscaped cemeteries such as [[Mount Auburn Cemetery|Mount Auburn]] in [[Cambridge, Massachusetts]], and [[Green-Wood Cemetery|Green-Wood]] in Brooklyn.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=130–135}}{{sfn|Taylor|2009|p=266}} The design was also inspired by Olmsted's 1850 visit to [[Birkenhead Park]] in [[Birkenhead]], England,{{sfn|Olmsted|1852|p=83}} which is generally acknowledged as the first publicly funded civil park in the world.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wirral.gov.uk/LGCL/100006/200073/670/content_0001110.html |title=The History of Birkenhead Park |work=Metropolitan Borough of Wirral |access-date=March 26, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080626164507/http://www.wirral.gov.uk/LGCL/100006/200073/670/content_0001110.html |archive-date=June 26, 2008 }}</ref>{{sfn|Brocklebank|2003|pp=32–33}}<ref>{{Cite news |last=Foderaro|first=Lisa W.|date=October 30, 2019|title=The Parks That Made the Man Who Made Central Park|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/30/travel/footsteps-frederick-law-olmsted-parks.html|access-date=August 29, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> According to Olmsted, the park was "of great importance as the first real Park made in this country—a democratic development of the highest significance".{{sfn|Scobey|2002|p=20}}{{sfn|Taylor|2009|pp=267–268}}

{{Wide image|1868 Vaux ^ Olmsted Map of Central Park, New York City - Geographicus - CentralPark-CentralPark-1869.jpg|800px|alt=Greensward's Plan| Modified Greensward Plan, 1868|align-cap=center}}

===Construction===

Construction of Central Park's design was executed by a gamut of professionals. [[Frederick Law Olmsted]] and [[Calvert Vaux]] were the primary designers, assisted by board member [[Andrew Haswell Green]], architect [[Jacob Wrey Mould]], master gardener [[Ignaz Anton Pilat]], and engineer [[George E. Waring Jr.]]{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=51}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ci.columbia.edu/0240s/0244_3/0244_3_s3_text.html |title=The Architecture and Development of New York City|first=Andrew S.|last=Dolkart|access-date=October 20, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081205202859/http://ci.columbia.edu/0240s/0244_3/0244_3_s3_text.html|archive-date=December 5, 2008}}</ref> Olmsted was responsible for the overall plan, while Vaux designed some of the finer details. Mould, who worked frequently with Vaux, designed the Central Park Esplanade and the [[Tavern on the Green]] building.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=52}} Pilat was the park's chief landscape architect, whose primary responsibility was the importation and placement of plants within the park.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=52}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=170–172}} A "corps" of construction engineers and foremen, managed by superintending engineer William H. Grant, were tasked with the measuring and constructing architectural features such as paths, roads, and buildings.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=159–160}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/21074748/william_h_grant_obituary_page_5/|title=William H. Grant, C.E|date=October 12, 1896|work=The New York Times|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=5|via=newspapers.com|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419152113/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/21074748/william_h_grant_obituary_page_5/|archive-date=April 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Waring was one of the engineers working under Grant's leadership and was in charge of land drainage.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=163–165}}{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=40–41}}

Central Park was difficult to construct because of the generally rocky and swampy landscape.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=57–58}} Around {{Convert|5|e6ft3|m3||spell=in}} of soil and rocks had to be transported out of the park, and more gunpowder was used to clear the area than was used at the [[Battle of Gettysburg]] during the [[American Civil War]].{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=150}} More than {{convert|18500|yd3|m3}} of topsoil were transported from [[Long Island]] and [[New Jersey]], because the original soil was neither fertile nor sufficiently substantial to sustain the flora specified in the Greensward Plan.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=57–58}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=150}} Modern steam-powered equipment and custom tree-moving machines augmented the work of unskilled laborers.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=150}} In total, over 20,000 individuals helped construct Central Park.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=150}} Because of extreme precautions taken to minimize collateral damage, five laborers died during the project, at a time when fatality rates were generally much higher.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=166–167}}

During the development of Central Park, Superintendent Olmsted hired several dozen [[mounted police]] officers, who were classified into two types of "keepers": park keepers and gate keepers.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=57–58}}{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1865|pp=20–21 (PDF pp. 19–20)}}{{sfn|Taylor|2009|pp=288–289}} The mounted police were viewed favorably by park patrons and were later incorporated into a permanent patrol.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=57–58}} The regulations were sometimes strict.{{sfn|Taylor|2009|pp=288–289}} For instance, prohibited actions included [[Game of chance|games of chance]], speech-making, large congregations such as [[picnics]], or picking flowers or other parts of plants.{{sfn|Taylor|2009|pp=288–289}}{{sfn|Berman|2003|p=41}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30592170/|title=Ordinances of the Central Park|date=June 5, 1870 |work=[[New York Herald]]|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=12|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> These ordinances were effective: by 1866, there had been nearly eight million visits and only 110 arrests in the park's history.{{sfn|Homberger|1994|pp=88–89}}

==== Late 1850s ====
[[File:The Lake Central Park.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|alt=The Lake in Central Part with a high-rise building in the background|The Lake, one of the first features of Central Park to be completed]]
In late August 1857, workers began building fences, clearing vegetation, draining the land, and leveling uneven terrain.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=161–162}}{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1858|loc=PDF pp. 31–35}} By the following month, chief engineer Viele reported that the project employed nearly 700 workers.{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1858|loc=PDF pp. 31–35}} Olmsted employed workers using [[day labor]], hiring men directly without any contracts and paying them by the day.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=159–160}} Many of the laborers were [[Irish diaspora|Irish immigrants]] or first-or-second generation [[Irish Americans]], and some [[German Americans|Germans]] and [[Italian Americans|Italians]];{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=173–175}} there were no black or female laborers.{{sfn|Taylor|2009|pp=282–283}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=176–177}} The workers were often underpaid,{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=176–177}}<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1857/12/11/archives/newyork-city-dr-charles-mackay-on-english-songs-and-songwriters.html |title=New York City; Dr Charles Mackay, on English Songs and Song-Writers|date=December 11, 1857|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 7, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190407020321/https://www.nytimes.com/1857/12/11/archives/newyork-city-dr-charles-mackay-on-english-songs-and-songwriters.html|archive-date=April 7, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and workers would often take jobs at other construction projects to supplement their income.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=178–179}} A pattern of seasonal hiring was established, wherein more workers would be hired and paid at higher rates during the summers.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=176–177}}

For several months, the park commissioners faced funding issues,<ref name="NYS-1911">{{cite book |chapter=Sixteenth Annual Report, 1911, of the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society |title=First-thirtieth Annual Report ... 1896–1925 to the Legislature of the State of New York |year=1911 |publisher=American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=0KhIAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA474 474]}}</ref>{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=151–152}} and a dedicated workforce and funding stream was not secured until June 1858.<ref name="NYS-1911"/> The landscaped [[Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir|Upper Reservoir]] was the only part of the park that the commissioners were not responsible for constructing; instead, the Reservoir would be built by the Croton Aqueduct board. Work on the Reservoir started in April 1858.{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=47–48}} The first major work in Central Park involved grading the driveways and draining the land in the park's southern section.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=31}}<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1858/11/11/archives/the-central-park-progress-of-the-workits-present-condition-and-the.html |title=The Central Park; Progress of the Work—Its Present Condition, and the Prospects of its being Opened to the Public|date=November 11, 1858|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 2, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411222607/https://www.nytimes.com/1858/11/11/archives/the-central-park-progress-of-the-workits-present-condition-and-the.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The Lake in Central Park's southwestern section was the first feature to open to the public, in December 1858,{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=32–33}} followed by the Ramble in June 1859.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=166–167}}{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1859|p=10 (PDF p. 11)}} The same year, the New York State Legislature authorized the purchase of an additional {{convert|65|acre|ha}} at the northern end of Central Park, from 106th&nbsp;to 110th&nbsp;Streets.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=32–33}}{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1859|p=23 (PDF p. 25)}} The section of Central Park south of 79th&nbsp;Street was mostly completed by 1860.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1860/05/01/archives/central-park-matters-plan-of-work-for-the-year-summer-features-of.html |title=Central Park Matters; Plan of Work for the Year |date=May 1, 1860|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 4, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190404170136/https://www.nytimes.com/1860/05/01/archives/central-park-matters-plan-of-work-for-the-year-summer-features-of.html|archive-date=April 4, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

The park commissioners reported in June 1860 that $4&nbsp;million had been spent on the construction to date.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1860/06/28/archives/the-central-park-investigation-examination-of-mr-olmsted.html |title=The Central Park Investigation; Examination of Mr. Olmsted|date=June 28, 1860|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 9, 2019|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> As a result of the sharply rising construction costs, the commissioners eliminated or downsized several features in the Greensward Plan.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=184–186}} Based on claims of cost mismanagement, the New York State Senate commissioned the Swiss engineer Julius Kellersberger to write a report on the park.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1860/11/23/archives/the-central-park-investigation-expenses-and-general-management.html |title=The Central Park Investigation; Expenses and General Management|date=November 23, 1860|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 9, 2019|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Kellersberger's report, submitted in 1861, stated that the commission's management of the park was a "triumphant success".{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=188–189}}{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=37–38}}

{{wide image|Annual report of the Board of Commissioners of the Central Park (1858) (18246225410).jpg|800px|alt=Map showing improvements to the park in 1858|Map of improvements underway by 1858|align-cap=center}}

==== 1860s ====
[[File:Central Park 1862 crop.jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=Bethesda Terrace under construction|[[Bethesda Terrace]] and Fountain under construction in 1862]]
Olmsted often clashed with the park commissioners, notably with Chief Commissioner Green.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=184–186}}{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=64–65}} Olmsted resigned in June 1862, and Green was appointed to Olmsted's position.<ref name="NYTimes-Green-CP-1897">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1897/10/10/archives/illustrated-weekly-magazine-andrew-h-green-and-central-park.html |title=Andrew H. Green and Central Park|date=October 10, 1897 |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 2, 2019|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=190–192}} Vaux resigned in 1863 because of what he saw as pressure from Green.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=69}} As superintendent of the park, Green accelerated construction, though having little experience in architecture.<ref name="NYTimes-Green-CP-1897"/> He implemented a style of [[micromanagement]], keeping records of the smallest transactions in an effort to reduce costs.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=64–65}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=193–195}} Green finalized the negotiations to purchase the northernmost {{convert|65|acre}} of the park which was later converted into a "rugged" woodland and the Harlem Meer waterway.<ref name="NYTimes-Green-CP-1897"/>{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=193–195}}

When the American Civil War began in 1861, the park commissioners decided to continue building Central Park, since significant parts of the park had already been completed.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=46}} Only three major structures were completed during the Civil War: the Music Stand and the [[Central Park Casino|Casino]] restaurant, both later demolished, and the [[Bethesda Terrace and Fountain]].{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=58–59}} By late 1861, the park south of 72nd&nbsp;Street had been completed, except for various fences.{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1861|p=16 (PDF p. 19)}} Work had begun on the northern section of the park but was complicated by a need to preserve the historic [[McGowan's Pass]].{{sfn|New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|1864|pp=7–8}} The Upper Reservoir was completed the following year.{{sfn|Kadinsky|2016|p=42}}

During this period Central Park began to gain popularity.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=46}} One of the main attractions was the "Carriage Parade", a daily display of horse-drawn carriages that traversed the park.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=46}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=222}}{{sfn|Morris|1996|p=95}} Park patronage grew steadily: by 1867, Central Park accommodated nearly three million pedestrians, 85,000 horses, and 1.38&nbsp;million vehicles annually.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=46}} The park had activities for New Yorkers of all social classes. While the wealthy could ride horses on bridle paths or travel in horse-drawn carriages, almost everyone was able to participate in sports such as ice-skating or rowing, or listen to concerts at the Mall's bandstand.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=47}}

Olmsted and Vaux were re-hired in mid-1865.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=71}} Several structures were erected, including the Children's District, the [[Ballplayers House]], and the Dairy in the southern part of Central Park. Construction commenced on Belvedere Castle, Harlem Meer, and structures on Conservatory Water and the Lake.{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|pp=58–59}}{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=74}}

==== 1870–1876: completion ====
[[File:The Pennsylvania railroad- its origin, construction, condition, and connections. Embracing historical, descriptive, and statistical notices of cities, towns, villages, stations, industries, and (14573460329).jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=People on horseback and riding in carriages in the park|Gentry in the new park, {{circa}} 1870]]
The [[Tammany Hall]] political machine, which was the largest political force in New York at the time, was in control of Central Park for a brief period beginning in April 1870.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=77}} A new [[charter]] created by Tammany boss [[William M. Tweed]] abolished the old 11-member commission and replaced it with one with five men composed of Green and four other Tammany-connected figures.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=77}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=263}} Subsequently, Olmsted and Vaux resigned again from the project in November 1870.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|p=77}} After Tweed's embezzlement was publicly revealed in 1871, leading to his imprisonment, Olmsted and Vaux were re-hired, and the Central Park Commission appointed new members who were mostly in favor of Olmsted.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=78–79}}

One of the areas that remained relatively untouched was the underdeveloped western side of Central Park, though some large structures would be erected in the park's remaining empty plots.<ref name="NYTimes-Improvement-1872">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1872/08/25/archives/central-park-improvement.html |title=Central Park Improvement|date=August 25, 1872|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 9, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190409175425/https://www.nytimes.com/1872/08/25/archives/central-park-improvement.html|archive-date=April 9, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> By 1872, Manhattan Square had been reserved for the [[American Museum of Natural History]], founded three years before at the [[Arsenal (Central Park)|Arsenal]]. A corresponding area on the East Side, originally intended as a playground, would later become the [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]].<ref name="NYTimes-Improvement-1872"/>{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=86–87}} In the final years of Central Park's construction, Vaux and Mould designed several structures for Central Park. The park's sheepfold (now Tavern on the Green) and Ladies' Meadow were designed by Mould in 1870–1871, followed by the administrative offices on the 86th&nbsp;Street transverse in 1872.{{sfn|Heckscher|2008|p=60}} Even though Olmsted and Vaux's partnership was dissolved by the end of 1872,{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=280}} the park was not officially completed until 1876.{{sfn|Taylor|2009|p=292}}

===Late 19th and early 20th centuries: first decline===
[[File:Belvedere Castle, Central Park.jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=Belvedere Castle|[[Belvedere Castle]], completed 1869]]
[[File:Flickr - …trialsanderrors - Lower end of mall, Central Park, New York City, 1901.jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=The tree-lined mall with people walking and others seated on benches on either side|Lower end of the mall, seen in 1901]]
By the 1870s, the park's patrons increasingly came to include the middle and working class, and strict regulations were gradually eased, such as those against public gatherings.{{sfn|Berman|2003|p=81}} Because of the heightened visitor count, neglect by the Tammany administration, and budget cuts demanded by taxpayers, the maintenance expenses for Central Park had reached a nadir by 1879.{{sfn|Berman|2003|p=41}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=281–283}} Olmsted blamed politicians, real estate owners, and park workers for Central Park's decline, though high maintenance costs were also a factor.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=264–266}} By the 1890s, the park faced several challenges: cars were becoming commonplace, and with the proliferation of amusements and refreshment stands, people were beginning to see the park as a recreational attraction.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=84–85}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=315–317}} The 1904 opening of the [[New York City Subway]] displaced Central Park as the city's predominant leisure destination, as New Yorkers could travel to farther destinations such as [[Coney Island]] beaches or [[Broadway theatre|Broadway theaters]] for a five-cent fare.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=386–387}}

In the late 19th&nbsp;century the landscape architect [[Samuel Parsons]] took the position of New York City parks superintendent. A onetime apprentice of [[Calvert Vaux]],{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=89–90}} Parsons helped restore the nurseries of Central Park in 1886.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1886/10/10/archives/renewing-central-park-detective-management-of-the-trees-and.html |title=Renewing Central Park; Detective Management of the Trees and Shrubbery to Be Remedied|date=October 10, 1886|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 9, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190409175428/https://www.nytimes.com/1886/10/10/archives/renewing-central-park-detective-management-of-the-trees-and.html|archive-date=April 9, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Parsons closely followed Olmsted's original vision for the park, restoring Central Park's trees while blocking the placement of several large statues in the park.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=91–93}} Under Parsons' leadership, two circles (now [[Duke Ellington Circle|Duke Ellington]] and [[Frederick Douglass Circle]]s) were constructed at the northern corners of the park.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1888/07/15/archives/new-central-park-plaza.html |title=New Central Park Plaza|date=July 15, 1888|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 14, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414210427/https://www.nytimes.com/1888/07/15/archives/new-central-park-plaza.html|archive-date=April 14, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=294–295}} He was removed in May 1911 following a lengthy dispute over whether an expense to replace the soil in the park was unnecessary.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=91–93}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/55203962/ |title=Samuel Parsons Dismissed|date=May 12, 1911|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=20 |via=Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190423183947/https://www.newspapers.com/image/55203962/ |archive-date=April 23, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> A succession of Tammany-affiliated Democratic mayors were indifferent toward Central Park.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=99–100}}

Several park advocacy groups were formed in the early 20th&nbsp;century. To preserve the park's character, the citywide Parks and Playground Association, and a consortium of multiple Central Park civic groups operating under the Parks Conservation Association, were formed in the 1900s and 1910s.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=115–116}} These associations advocated against such changes to the park as the construction of a library,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1912/06/01/archives/to-oppose-library-in-central-park-we-object-even-to-art-museum.html |title=To Oppose Library in Central Park|date=June 1, 1912|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2019 |issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411184915/https://www.nytimes.com/1912/06/01/archives/to-oppose-library-in-central-park-we-object-even-to-art-museum.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> sports stadium,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1919/12/16/archives/to-oppose-stadium-in-central-park-three-directors-of-parks-and.html |title=To Oppose Stadium in Central Park|date=December 16, 1919 |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411184908/https://www.nytimes.com/1919/12/16/archives/to-oppose-stadium-in-central-park-three-directors-of-parks-and.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> a cultural center,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1923/11/28/archives/resist-plan-to-rob-park-of-412-acres-playgrounds-association-pro.html |title=Resist Plan to Rob Park of 41.2 Acres|date=November 28, 1923|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411184905/https://www.nytimes.com/1923/11/28/archives/resist-plan-to-rob-park-of-412-acres-playgrounds-association-pro.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and an underground parking lot.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1927/01/07/archives/objects-to-a-park-garage-central-park-association-writes-protest-to.html |title=Objects to a Park Garage|date=January 7, 1927|work=The New York Times |access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411190030/https://www.nytimes.com/1927/01/07/archives/objects-to-a-park-garage-central-park-association-writes-protest-to.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> A third group, the Central Park Association, was created in 1926.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=115–116}} The Central Park Association and the Parks and Playgrounds Association were merged into the Park Association of New York City two years later.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1928/05/14/archives/park-bodies-merge-in-new-association-to-speed-city-plans-nathan.html|title=Park Bodies Merge In New Association To Speed City Plans|date=May 14, 1928|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411184907/https://www.nytimes.com/1928/05/14/archives/park-bodies-merge-in-new-association-to-speed-city-plans-nathan.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Heckscher Playground]]—named after philanthropist [[August Heckscher]], who donated the play equipment—opened near its southern end in 1926,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1926/06/22/archives/to-raise-3000000-for-central-park-august-heckschers-proposal-is.html |title=To Raise $3,000,000 For Central Park|date=June 22, 1926|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=April 22, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411184905/https://www.nytimes.com/1926/06/22/archives/to-raise-3000000-for-central-park-august-heckschers-proposal-is.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=395–397}} and quickly became popular with poor immigrant families.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=395–397}} The following year, Mayor [[Jimmy Walker]] commissioned landscape designer Hermann W. Merkel to create a plan to improve Central Park.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=99–100}} Merkel's plans would combat vandalism and plant destruction, rehabilitate paths, and add eight new playgrounds, at a cost of $1&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30440263/|title=New Central Park Outlined in Plans|date=December 20, 1927|work=New York Daily News|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=215 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref>{{sfn|Herrick|1928|p=5 (PDF p. 6)}} One of the suggested modifications, underground irrigation pipes, were installed soon after Merkel's report was submitted.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=99–100}}<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1927/03/29/archives/favors-irrigation-for-central-park-city-takes-first-step-in-its.html |title=Favors Irrigation For Central Park |date=March 29, 1927|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 9, 2019 |issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190409220558/https://www.nytimes.com/1927/03/29/archives/favors-irrigation-for-central-park-city-takes-first-step-in-its.html|archive-date=April 9, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The other improvements outlined in the report, such as fences to mitigate plant destruction, were postponed due to the [[Great Depression]].{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=101–102}}

=== 1930s to 1950s: Moses rehabilitation ===

In 1934, Republican [[Fiorello La Guardia]] was elected [[List of mayors of New York City|mayor of New York City]]. He unified the five park-related departments then in existence. Newly appointed city parks commissioner [[Robert Moses]] was given the task of cleaning up the park, and he summarily fired many of the Tammany-era staff.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=103–105}} At the time, the lawns were filled with weeds and dust patches, while many trees were dying or already dead. Monuments had been vandalized, equipment and walkways were broken, and ironwork was rusted.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=103–105}}{{sfn|Caro|1974|p=334}} Moses's biographer [[Robert Caro]] later said, "The once beautiful Mall looked like a scene of a wild party the morning after. Benches lay on their backs, their legs jabbing at the sky..."{{sfn|Caro|1974|p=334}}

During the following year, the city's parks department replanted lawns and flowers, replaced dead trees and bushes, sandblasted walls, repaired roads and bridges, and restored statues.{{sfn|Stern|Gilmartin|Mellins|1987|p=710}}{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=106–109}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=450–451}} The park [[menagerie]] was transformed into the modern [[Central Park Zoo]], and a rat extermination program was instituted within the zoo.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=106–109}} Another dramatic change was Moses' removal of the "[[Hoover valley]]" shantytown at the north end of Turtle Pond, which became the {{convert|30|acre|ha|abbr=|adj=on}} Great Lawn.{{sfn|Stern|Gilmartin|Mellins|1987|p=710}}{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=450–451}} The western part of the Pond at the park's southeast corner became an ice skating rink called [[Wollman Rink]],{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=106–109}} roads were improved or widened,{{sfn|Caro|1974|p=984}} and twenty-one playgrounds were added.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=450–451}} These projects used funds from the [[New Deal]] program, and donations from the public.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=450–451}} Moses removed [[Sheep Meadow]]'s sheep to make way for the Tavern on the Green restaurant.{{sfn|Caro|1974|p=984}}<ref name="NYTimes-Sheep-1934">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1934/03/18/archives/central-parks-sheep-join-the-fold-in-prospect-park.html |title=Central Park's Sheep Join the Fold in Prospect Park|date=March 18, 1934|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 9, 2019 |issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190409220559/https://www.nytimes.com/1934/03/18/archives/central-parks-sheep-join-the-fold-in-prospect-park.html |archive-date=April 9, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

Renovations in the 1940s and 1950s include a restoration of the Harlem Meer completed in 1943,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1943/12/08/archives/central-park-section-reopened-to-the-public.html |title=Central Park Section Reopened to the Public|date=December 8, 1943|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411190024/https://www.nytimes.com/1943/12/08/archives/central-park-section-reopened-to-the-public.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and a new boathouse completed in 1954.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1954/03/12/archives/new-305000-boathouse-at-central-park-lake-will-be-opened-today.html |title=New $305,000 Boathouse at Central Park Lake Will Be Opened Today|date=March 12, 1954|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 16, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190416215133/https://www.nytimes.com/1954/03/12/archives/new-305000-boathouse-at-central-park-lake-will-be-opened-today.html|archive-date=April 16, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Loeb Boat House 1939">{{cite web|url=https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/central-park/highlights/12360 |work=Central Park Highlights|title=Loeb Boat House|publisher=New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|access-date=April 16, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190416215624/https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/central-park/highlights/12360 |archive-date=April 16, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Conservancy Loeb Boathouse">{{cite web |url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/things-to-see-and-do/attractions/loeb-boathouse.html |title=Loeb Boathouse|publisher=Central Park Conservancy|access-date=April 16, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190417003341/http://www.centralparknyc.org/things-to-see-and-do/attractions/loeb-boathouse.html|archive-date=April 17, 2019}}</ref> Moses began construction on several other recreational features in Central Park, such as playgrounds and ball fields.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=110–111}} One of the more controversial projects proposed during this time was a 1956 dispute over a parking lot for Tavern in the Green. The controversy placed Moses, an urban planner known for displacing families for other large projects around the city, against a group of mothers who frequented a wooded hollow at the site of a parking lot.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=110–111}}<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1956/04/25/archives/parking-lot-foes-routed-by-moses-construction-of-parking-lot-begun.html |title=Parking Lot Foes Routed By Moses|last=Schumach |first=Murray|date=April 25, 1956|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411184904/https://www.nytimes.com/1956/04/25/archives/parking-lot-foes-routed-by-moses-construction-of-parking-lot-begun.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Though opposed by the parents, Moses approved the destruction of part of the hollow. Demolition work commenced after Central Park was closed for the night and was only halted after the threat of a lawsuit.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=110–111}}<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1956/04/27/archives/court-stops-job-in-central-park-hearing-on-parking-lot-due.html |title=Court Stops Job In Central Park|date=April 27, 1956|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411184903/https://www.nytimes.com/1956/04/27/archives/court-stops-job-in-central-park-hearing-on-parking-lot-due.html|archive-date=April 11, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== 1960s and 1970s: "Events Era" and second decline ===
Moses left his position in May 1960. No park commissioner since then has been able to exercise the same degree of power, nor did NYC Parks remain in as stable a position in the aftermath of his departure. Eight commissioners held the office in the twenty years following his departure.{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=112–113}} The city experienced economic and social changes, with some residents moving to the suburbs.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=476}}<ref name="centralparknyc history2">{{cite web |url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/about/history.html |title=History|date=August 18, 2009 |publisher=Central Park Conservancy|access-date=December 20, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140310211751/http://www.centralparknyc.org/about/history.html|archive-date=March 10, 2014}}</ref> Interest in Central Park's landscape had long since declined, and it was now mostly being used for recreation.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gregg|first=John|date=April 29, 1962 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30726005/ |title=Manhattan's Changing|work=New York Daily News|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=52 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Several unrealized additions were proposed for Central Park in that decade, such as a public housing development,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/05/07/archives/housing-plan-for-central-park-scored-as-absurd-and-outrage.html |title=Housing Plan for Central Park; Scored as 'Absurd' and 'Outrage' |date=May 7, 1964 |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418180855/https://www.nytimes.com/1964/05/07/archives/housing-plan-for-central-park-scored-as-absurd-and-outrage.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> a golf course,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/11/19/archives/golf-in-central-park-is-rejected-by-morris.html |title=Golf in Central Park Is Rejected by Morris|date=November 19, 1964|work=The New York Times |access-date=April 18, 2019 |issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418180857/https://www.nytimes.com/1964/11/19/archives/golf-in-central-park-is-rejected-by-morris.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and a "revolving world's fair".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1966/10/20/archives/a-revolving-worlds-fair-in-central-park-proposed.html |title=A 'Revolving World's Fair' In Central Park Proposed|date=October 20, 1966 |work=The New York Times |access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418180853/https://www.nytimes.com/1966/10/20/archives/a-revolving-worlds-fair-in-central-park-proposed.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The 1960s marked the beginning of an "Events Era" in Central Park that reflected the widespread cultural and political trends of the period.{{sfn|Rogers|2018|p=20}} [[The Public Theater]]'s annual [[Shakespeare in the Park]] festival was settled in the [[Delacorte Theater]],<ref>{{Cite news|last=Calta|first=Louis|date=May 20, 1971 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1971/05/20/archives/papp-altering-central-park-theater.html |title=Papp Altering Central Park Theater|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418023356/https://www.nytimes.com/1971/05/20/archives/papp-altering-central-park-theater.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and summer performances were instituted on the Sheep Meadow and the Great Lawn by the [[New York Philharmonic Orchestra]] and the [[Metropolitan Opera]].{{Refn|See, for example:
<br/>{{*}}{{cite web|last=Strongin|first=Theodore|title=Concert in Park Heard by 73,500|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|date=August 18, 1965|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1965/08/18/archives/concert-in-park-heard-by-73500-ozawa-leads-philharmonic-in-the.html|access-date=April 18, 2019}}
<br/>{{*}}{{cite web|last=Wilson|first=John S.|title=Barbra Streisand's Free Sing-In Jams Sheep Meadow in the Park|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|date=June 18, 1967|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/06/18/archives/barbra-streisands-free-singin-jams-sheep-meadow-in-the-park-barbra.html|access-date=April 18, 2019}}}} During the late 1960s, the park became the venue for rallies and cultural events such as the [[Central Park be-in|"love-ins" and "be-ins"]] of the period.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|p=489}} The same year, [[Lasker Rink]] opened in the northern part of the park; the facility served as an ice rink in winter and Central Park's only swimming pool in summer.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1966/12/22/archives/lindsay-and-hoving-give-new-skating-rink-a-whirl.html |title=Lindsay and Hoving Give New Skating Rink a Whirl|date=December 22, 1966|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 19, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

By the mid-1970s, managerial neglect resulted in a decline in park conditions. A 1973 report noted that the park suffered from severe erosion and tree decay, and that individual structures were being vandalized or neglected.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/06/08/archives/central-park-condition-decried-preliminary-estimate.html |title=Central Park Condition Decried|last=Hudson|first=Edward|date=June 8, 1973|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418180852/https://www.nytimes.com/1973/06/08/archives/central-park-condition-decried-preliminary-estimate.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The Central Park Community Fund was subsequently created based on the recommendation of a report from a [[Columbia University]] professor.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/11/20/archives/central-park-called-badly-managed-report-urges-a-board-of-guardians.html |title=Central Park Called Badly Managed;|last=Gerston |first=Jill|date=November 20, 1974|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418180904/https://www.nytimes.com/1974/11/20/archives/central-park-called-badly-managed-report-urges-a-board-of-guardians.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The Fund then commissioned a study of the park's management and suggested the appointment of both a NYC Parks administrator and a board of citizens.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/11/12/archives/special-management-plan-urged-to-combat-central-parks-decay-against.html |title=Special Management Plan Urged To Combat Central Park's Decay|last=Maitland |first=Leslie|date=November 12, 1978|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418180857/https://www.nytimes.com/1978/11/12/archives/special-management-plan-urged-to-combat-central-parks-decay-against.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1979, Parks Commissioner [[Gordon Davis]] established the Office of Central Park Administrator and appointed [[Elizabeth Barlow Rogers|Elizabeth Barlow]], the executive director of the Central Park Task Force, to the position.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Dembart|first=Lee|date=February 28, 1979 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/02/28/archives/new-central-park-overseer-elizabeth-browning-barlow.html |title=New Central Park Overseer |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418180856/https://www.nytimes.com/1979/02/28/archives/new-central-park-overseer-elizabeth-browning-barlow.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Slagle 1983">{{cite news|title=The Greening of Central Park|last=Slagle|first=Alton|date=February 6, 1983 |work=New York Daily News|pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30728624/ 7], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30728655/ 55]|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> The Central Park Conservancy, a nonprofit organization with a citizen board, was founded the following year.<ref name="NYTimes-Conservancy-1980">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/12/14/archives/mayor-koch-sets-up-conservancy-for-central-park-three-appointed-by.html |title=Mayor Koch Sets Up Conservancy for Central Park|last=Glueck|first=Grace|date=December 14, 1980|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019 |issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418185030/https://www.nytimes.com/1980/12/14/archives/mayor-koch-sets-up-conservancy-for-central-park-three-appointed-by.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="NYDN-Conservancy-1980">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30728501/|title=Central Park gets its own fund-raisers|date=December 18, 1980 |work=New York Daily News|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=181|via=newspapers.com}}</ref>

===1970s to 2000s: restoration===
{{multiple image|direction=vertical|align=right|width=220
|image1=great-lawn-before250.jpg|alt caption1=Great Lawn before renovations showing large areas of dead grass|caption1=The Great Lawn before renovations in the late 1970s
|image2=Great-Lawn.jpg|alt caption2= Great Lawns and five baseball diamonds after restoration |caption2=The Great Lawn after renovations in the 1980s}}

Under the leadership of the Central Park Conservancy, the park's reclamation began by addressing needs that could not be met within NYC Parks' existing resources. The Conservancy hired interns and a small restoration staff to reconstruct and repair unique rustic features, undertaking horticultural projects, and removing graffiti under the [[broken windows theory]] which advocated removing visible signs of decay.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30728554/|title=Pruning Central Park|last=Larkin|first=Kathy |date=May 6, 1983|work=New York Daily News|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=69|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> The first structure to be renovated was the Dairy, which reopened as the park's first visitor center in 1979.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/11/16/archives/1870-dairy-in-the-park-reopening-victim-of-fiscal-crisis.html |title=1870 Dairy In the Park Reopening|date=November 16, 1979 |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418185025/https://www.nytimes.com/1979/11/16/archives/1870-dairy-in-the-park-reopening-victim-of-fiscal-crisis.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The Sheep Meadow, which reopened the following year, was the first landscape to be restored.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/09/25/archives/central-parks-sheep-meadow-where-the-grass-is-greener-is-reopened.html |title=Central Park's Sheep Meadow, Where the Grass Is Greener, Is Reopened|date=September 25, 1980|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418025349/https://www.nytimes.com/1980/09/25/archives/central-parks-sheep-meadow-where-the-grass-is-greener-is-reopened.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Bethesda Terrace and Fountain, the [[USS Maine National Monument|USS ''Maine'' National Monument]], and the [[Bow Bridge (Central Park)|Bow Bridge]] were also rehabilitated.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Murphy |first1=Jean Parker |last2=Ottavino |first2=Kate Burns |date=1986 |title=The Rehabilitation of Bethesda Terrace: The Terrace Bridge and Landscape, Central Park, New York |journal=[[APT Bulletin]] |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=24–38 |doi=10.2307/1494116 |jstor=1494116}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Champe |first1=Peter|last2=Rabinowitz|first2=Mark|date=1999|title=Restoring the Minton Tile Ceiling, Bethesda Terrace Arcade, Central Park, New York City|journal=[[APT Bulletin]] |volume=30|issue=2–3 |pages=11–16 |doi=10.2307/1504635 |jstor=1504635}}</ref><ref name="Carmody 1981">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/14/world/10-year-restoration-planned-for-central-park.html |title=10-Year Restoration Planned for Central Park|last=Carmody|first=Deirdre|date=October 14, 1981 |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418185024/https://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/14/world/10-year-restoration-planned-for-central-park.html |archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> By then, the Conservancy was engaged in design efforts and long-term restoration planning,<ref name="Carmody 1984">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/10/13/nyregion/central-park-renews-its-details-and-vistas-in-a-burst-of-repairs.html |title=Central Park Renews Its Details and Vistas in a Burst of Repairs|last=Carmody |first=Deirdre|date=October 13, 1984|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418190536/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/10/13/nyregion/central-park-renews-its-details-and-vistas-in-a-burst-of-repairs.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and in 1981, Davis and Barlow announced a 10-year, $100&nbsp;million "Central Park Management and Restoration Plan".<ref name="Carmody 1981"/> The long-closed Belvedere Castle was renovated and reopened in 1983,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/21/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-crown-for-a-castle.html |title=New York Day by Day; Crown for a Castle|last1=Johnston |first1=Laurie|date=September 21, 1983|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|last2=Anderson|first2=Susan Heller|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418190535/https://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/21/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-crown-for-a-castle.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30729022/|title=Thanks for the facelift|last=La Rosa|first=Paul |date=September 22, 1983|work=New York Daily News|access-date=March 30, 2019|page=158|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> while the Central Park Zoo closed for a full reconstruction that year.<ref name="Slagle 1983"/><ref name="Carmody 1984"/> To reduce the maintenance effort, large gatherings such as free concerts were canceled.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=518–519}}

On completion of the planning stage in 1985, the Conservancy launched its first campaign<ref name="centralparknyc history2"/> and mapped out a 15-year restoration plan.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/04/28/nyregion/the-city-unveils-a-blueprint-for-renovating-central-park.html |title=The City Unveils a Blueprint for Renovating Central Park|last=Carmody|first=Deirdre |date=April 28, 1985|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418215303/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/04/28/nyregion/the-city-unveils-a-blueprint-for-renovating-central-park.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Over the next several years, the campaign restored landmarks in the southern part of the park, such as [[Grand Army Plaza (Manhattan)|Grand Army Plaza]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/06/28/arts/review-architecture-a-restored-grand-army-plaza-with-a-new-coat-for-the-general.html?pagewanted=1 |title=Review/Architecture; A Restored Grand Army Plaza, With a New Coat for the General |last=Goldberger |first=Paul|date=June 28, 1990|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 14, 2010 |issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521055157/http://www.nytimes.com/1990/06/28/arts/review-architecture-a-restored-grand-army-plaza-with-a-new-coat-for-the-general.html?pagewanted=1|archive-date=May 21, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> and the police station at the 86th&nbsp;Street transverse;<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/04/realestate/streetscapes-central-park-stable-for-police-station-restoration-1870-jewel.html |title=Streetscapes: The Central Park Stable; For a Police Station, Restoration of an 1870 Jewel |last=Gray|first=Christopher|date=September 4, 1988|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418215258/https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/04/realestate/streetscapes-central-park-stable-for-police-station-restoration-1870-jewel.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> while Conservatory Garden in the northeastern corner of the park was restored to a design by [[Lynden B. Miller]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kaufman|first=Joanne|date=October 20, 2009 |title=She Creates Urban Edens |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204518504574416761822659336 |access-date=January 16, 2020 |work=[[Wall Street Journal]] |issn=0099-9660|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200116140942/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204518504574416761822659336 |archive-date=January 16, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/06/11/nyregion/garden-in-central-park-is-reborn-after-neglect.html |title=Garden in Central Park Is Reborn After Neglect|last=Lyall|first=Sarah|date=June 11, 1987|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418150339/https://www.nytimes.com/1987/06/11/nyregion/garden-in-central-park-is-reborn-after-neglect.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Kinkead|1990|pp=144–145}} Real estate developer [[Donald Trump]] renovated the Wollman Rink in 1987 after plans to renovate it were delayed repeatedly.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/10/15/nyregion/trump-to-run-2-ice-skating-rinks-in-central-park.html |title=Trump to Run 2 Ice-Skating Rinks in Central Park|last=Anderson|first=Susan Heller|date=October 15, 1987|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418211025/https://www.nytimes.com/1987/10/15/nyregion/trump-to-run-2-ice-skating-rinks-in-central-park.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> The following year, the Zoo reopened after a $35&nbsp;million, four-year renovation.<ref>{{cite news|title=The Zoo Crew|last=Faye Kaplan|first=Lisa|date=August 18, 1988|work=White Plains Journal-News |pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30733765/ 23], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30733848/ 24] |via=newspapers.com}}</ref>

Work on the northern end of the park began in 1989.<ref name="Howe 1993">{{Cite news |date=October 31, 1993 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/10/31/nyregion/neighborhood-report-central-park-a-rebirth-for-upper-park.html |title=Neighborhood Report: Central Park; A Rebirth For Upper Park |last=Howe|first=Marvine |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418215300/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/10/31/nyregion/neighborhood-report-central-park-a-rebirth-for-upper-park.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> A $51&nbsp;million campaign, announced in 1993,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Gray|first=Christopher|date=May 16, 1993 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/16/realestate/streetscapes-central-park-restoration-recalls-1930-s-battle-ballfields.html |title=Streetscapes: Central Park; Restoration Recalls the 1930s Battle of the Ballfields |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418215306/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/16/realestate/streetscapes-central-park-restoration-recalls-1930-s-battle-ballfields.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> resulted in the restoration of bridle trails,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Gray|first=Christopher |date= January 2, 1994 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/01/02/realestate/streetscapes-central-park-s-bridle-paths-challenge-restoring-long-neglected.html |title=Streetscapes/Central Park's Bridle Paths; The Challenge of Restoring Long-Neglected Trails |work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418215301/https://www.nytimes.com/1994/01/02/realestate/streetscapes-central-park-s-bridle-paths-challenge-restoring-long-neglected.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> the Mall,{{sfn|Central Park Conservancy|2014|p=22}} the Harlem Meer,<ref name="Kennedy 1993">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/09/realestate/a-nature-center-blooms-in-central-park-woodlands.html |title=A Nature Center Blooms in Central Park Woodlands|last=Kennedy|first=Shawn G.|date=May 9, 1993|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418215300/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/09/realestate/a-nature-center-blooms-in-central-park-woodlands.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and the North Woods,<ref name="Howe 1993"/> and the construction of the Dana Discovery Center on the Harlem Meer.<ref name="Kennedy 1993"/> This was followed by the Conservancy's overhaul of the {{convert|55|acres|abbr=on}} near the [[Great Lawn and Turtle Pond]], which was completed in 1997.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/09/nyregion/city-emerald-great-lawn-reopens-will-its-fans-love-it-to-death.html |title=City Emerald; Great Lawn Reopens. Will Its Fans Love It to Death?|last=Martin |first=Douglas|date=October 9, 1997|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418215305/https://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/09/nyregion/city-emerald-great-lawn-reopens-will-its-fans-love-it-to-death.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The Upper Reservoir was decommissioned as a part of the city's water supply system in 1993,{{sfn|Kadinsky|2016|p=43}}<ref name="nyt19930506">{{Cite news|last=Roberts|first=Sam |title=131-Year-Old Reservoir Is Deemed Obsolete |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/06/nyregion/131-year-old-reservoir-is-deemed-obsolete.html |date=May 6, 1993|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 20, 2020 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612163427/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/06/nyregion/131-year-old-reservoir-is-deemed-obsolete.html |archive-date=June 12, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> and was renamed after former U.S. first lady [[Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis]] the next year.{{sfn|Kadinsky|2016|p=43}}<ref name="nyt19940723">{{Cite news |last=Kifner|first=John |title=Central Park Honor for Jacqueline Onassis |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/23/nyregion/central-park-honor-for-jacqueline-onassis.html |date=July 23, 1994|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 20, 2020|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181125114122/https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/23/nyregion/central-park-honor-for-jacqueline-onassis.html|archive-date=November 25, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> During the mid-1990s, the Conservancy hired additional volunteers and implemented a zone-based system of management throughout the park.<ref name="centralparknyc history2"/> The Conservancy assumed much of the park's operations in early 1998.<ref name="NYTimes-Conservancy-1998">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/12/nyregion/private-group-signs-central-park-deal-to-be-its-manager.html |title=Private Group Signs Central Park Deal To Be Its Manager |last=Martin |first=Douglas |date=February 12, 1998|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 18, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418215258/https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/12/nyregion/private-group-signs-central-park-deal-to-be-its-manager.html|archive-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

Renovations continued through the first decade of the 21st&nbsp;century, and a project to restore the pond was commenced in 2000.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/03/nyregion/neighborhood-report-central-park-fish-must-find-new-homes-pond-gets-makeover.html |title=Neighborhood Report: Central Park; Fish Must Find New Homes As Pond Gets a Makeover|last=Lee|first=Denny|date=September 3, 2000|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 19, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419024459/https://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/03/nyregion/neighborhood-report-central-park-fish-must-find-new-homes-pond-gets-makeover.html|archive-date=April 19, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> Four years later, the Conservancy replaced a chain-link fence with a replica of the original cast-iron fence that surrounded the Upper Reservoir.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Gray|first=Christopher |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/20/realestate/streetscapes-central-park-reservoir-good-fence-makes-neighbors-feel-good.html |title=Streetscapes/The Central Park Reservoir; A Good Fence Makes The Neighbors Feel Good |date=June 20, 2004|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 19, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419024458/https://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/20/realestate/streetscapes-central-park-reservoir-good-fence-makes-neighbors-feel-good.html|archive-date=April 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> It started refurbishing the ceiling tiles of the Bethesda Arcade,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/16/nyregion/thecity/16beth.html |title=Restoring Vaux's Vision, One Tile at a Time|last=Mooney|first=Jake|date=July 16, 2006|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 19, 2019|issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419024458/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/16/nyregion/thecity/16beth.html|archive-date=April 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> which was completed in 2007.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nycgovparks.org/news/press-releases?id=19863|title=Central Park's Bethesda Terrace Arcade Reopens|date=March 2, 2007|publisher=New York City Department of Parks and Recreation|access-date=April 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131101005814/http://www.nycgovparks.org/news/press-releases?id=19863|archive-date=November 1, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> Soon after, the Central Park Conservancy began restoring the Ramble and Lake,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Dunlap|first=David W.|date=July 18, 2008 |url=https://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/18/behind-the-dam-one-fierce-holdout/|title=Behind the Dam, One Fierce Holdout|work=City Room|publisher=The New York Times Company|access-date=April 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419024458/https://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/18/behind-the-dam-one-fierce-holdout/|archive-date=April 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> in a project that was completed in 2012.{{sfn|Central Park Conservancy|2014|p=56}} Bank Rock Bridge was restored,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/things-to-see-and-do/attractions/oak-bridge.html |title=Oak Bridge at Bank Rock Bay|publisher=Central Park Conservancy|access-date=October 12, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171012045236/http://www.centralparknyc.org/things-to-see-and-do/attractions/oak-bridge.html|archive-date=October 12, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/an-old-bridge-reconstructed-is-unveiled-in-central-park/ |title=An Old Bridge, Reconstructed, Is Unveiled in Central Park|last=Lee|first=Jennifer 8. |date=September 30, 2009 |work=City Room|publisher=The New York Times Company|access-date=April 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419024458/https://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/an-old-bridge-reconstructed-is-unveiled-in-central-park/|archive-date=April 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and the Gill, which empties into the lake, was reconstructed to approximate its dramatic original form.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.centralparknyc.org/site/DocServer/CampaignPressRelease.pdf?docID=143 |title=Central Park Conservancy Announces The Campaign For Central Park|publisher=Central Park Conservancy |date=2006|access-date=April 20, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071003070133/http://www.centralparknyc.org/site/DocServer/CampaignPressRelease.pdf?docID=143 |archive-date=October 3, 2007}}</ref> The final feature to be restored was the East Meadow, which was rehabilitated in 2011.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/nyregion/conservancy-marks-milestone-in-restoring-central-park.html |title=Conservancy Marks Milestone in Restoring Central Park|last=Foderaro|first=Lisa W. |date=September 20, 2011|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=April 13, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190413221727/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/nyregion/conservancy-marks-milestone-in-restoring-central-park.html|archive-date=April 13, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

===2010s to present===
In 2014, the [[New York City Council]] proposed a study on the viability of banning vehicular traffic from the park's drives.<ref>{{cite web|last=Dutes|first=Sheldon|title=Cars May Be Banned From Central Park|publisher=[[NBC New York]]|date=October 8, 2014|url=http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Central-Park-Car-Ban-Proposal-City-Council-278596801.html|access-date=September 12, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160718041338/http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Central-Park-Car-Ban-Proposal-City-Council-278596801.html|archive-date=July 18, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> The next year, mayor [[Bill de Blasio]] announced that West and East drives north of 72nd&nbsp;Street would be closed to vehicular traffic, because the city's data showed that closing the roads did not adversely impact traffic flows.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://7online.com/traffic/central-park-prospect-park-loops-to-be-closed-to-traffic-on-weekdays/791323/|title=Central Park, Prospect Park loops to be closed to traffic on weekdays|date=June 18, 2015|work=7 Online|access-date=June 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150701121349/http://7online.com/traffic/central-park-prospect-park-loops-to-be-closed-to-traffic-on-weekdays/791323/|archive-date=July 1, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Subsequently, in June 2018, the remaining drives south of 72nd&nbsp;Street were closed to vehicular traffic.<ref name="Walker 2018">{{cite web|url=https://ny.curbed.com/2018/6/27/17507830/central-park-new-york-car-free|title=At last, Central Park is permanently car-free|last=Walker|first=Ameena|date=June 27, 2018|publisher=[[Curbed NY]]|access-date=October 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181006234944/https://ny.curbed.com/2018/6/27/17507830/central-park-new-york-car-free|archive-date=October 6, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="ABC-Car-free-2018">{{cite web|url=https://abc7ny.com/3657602/|title=Central Park goes car-free as traffic ban takes effect|date=June 26, 2018|publisher=[[WABC-TV]]|access-date=October 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181006235131/https://abc7ny.com/3657602/|archive-date=October 6, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

Several structures were renovated. Belvedere Castle was closed in 2018 for an extensive renovation, reopening in June 2019.<ref>{{cite web|title=Central Park's Castle Gets a $12 Million Fairy-Tale Makeover|work=The New York Times |date=July 12, 2019|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/12/nyregion/central-park-belvedere-castle.html|issn=0362-4331|access-date=July 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190713021613/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/12/nyregion/central-park-belvedere-castle.html|archive-date=July 13, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2019/6/18/18683851/central-park-belvedere-castle-restoration-reopening-date|title=Central Park's Belvedere Castle will reopen June 28|last=Rosenberg|first=Zoe|date=June 18, 2019|publisher=Curbed NY |access-date=June 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190618195447/https://ny.curbed.com/2019/6/18/18683851/central-park-belvedere-castle-restoration-reopening-date|archive-date=June 18, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gothamist.com/2019/06/18/belvedere_castle_2019.php|title=Central Park's Belvedere Castle Reopening After Restoration|date=June 18, 2019|work=[[Gothamist]]|access-date=June 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190618180137/https://gothamist.com/2019/06/18/belvedere_castle_2019.php|archive-date=June 18, 2019}}</ref> Later in 2018, it was announced that the Delacorte Theater would be closed from 2020 to 2022 for a $110&nbsp;million rebuild.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/31/theater/delacorte-theater-shakespeare-in-the-park.html |title=A Restoration for Shakespeare's Home in Central Park|last=Pogrebin|first=Robin|date=October 31, 2018|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 19, 2019|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419024458/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/31/theater/delacorte-theater-shakespeare-in-the-park.html|archive-date=April 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> The Central Park Conservancy further announced that Lasker Rink would be closed for a $150&nbsp;million renovation<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-pol-lasker-pool-rink-central-park-20180717-story.html |title=Central Park's Lasker pool and ice rink set for $150 million makeover|last=Durkin|first=Erin|date=July 18, 2018|work=New York Daily News|access-date=April 17, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190417155022/https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-pol-lasker-pool-rink-central-park-20180717-story.html|archive-date=April 17, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> between 2021 and 2024.<ref>{{cite web|last=Barron|first=James|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/18/nyregion/central-park-skating.html |title=$110 Million to Fix Central Park Section Far From 'Billionaire's Row'|date=September 18, 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190919014602/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/18/nyregion/central-park-skating.html|archive-date=September 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amny.com/news/central-park-conservancy-redesign-1.36506820|title=Central Park's $150M redesign focuses on north end improvements|last=Cohen|first=Li Yakira|date=September 18, 2019|work=[[AM New York]]|access-date=September 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190920083237/https://www.amny.com/news/central-park-conservancy-redesign-1.36506820|archive-date=September 20, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metro.us/news/local-news/new-york/central-park-new-improved-year-round-pool-rink|title=Central Park to get new, improved pool and ice-skating rink|last=Glasser-Baker|first=Becca|date=September 18, 2019|work=Metro US|access-date=September 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190926050257/https://www.metro.us/news/local-news/new-york/central-park-new-improved-year-round-pool-rink|archive-date=September 26, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

In March 2020, in response to the [[2019–20 coronavirus pandemic|coronavirus pandemic]], temporary [[field hospital]]s were set up within the park to treat overflow patients from area hospitals.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tent hospital being constructed in New York City's Central Park|publisher=[[WCBS-TV]]|date=March 29, 2020|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/video/tent-hospital-being-constructed-in-new-york-citys-central-park/|access-date=March 30, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/30/us/new-york-coronavirus-cases-deaths/index.html |title=Central Park becomes a field hospital for New York, where coronavirus deaths have topped 1,000|last1=Holcombe|first1=Madeline|last2=Yan|first2=Holly|date=March 30, 2020|publisher=CNN|access-date=March 30, 2020}}</ref> By mid-2023, the New York City government was considering erecting tents in Central Park to temporarily house asylum seekers. This move came after the federal government repealed an order authorizing [[Title 42 expulsion]]s of migrants, which had been implemented during the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref name=nyt-2023-05-08>{{Cite news|last=Rubinstein|first=Dana|date=2023-05-08|title=Racetracks, Parks, Offices: A Frantic Search for Migrant Housing|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/08/nyregion/migrants-shelter-flatiron-nyc.html|access-date=2023-05-12|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="Gloria Pazmino 2023">{{cite web | last=Gloria Pazmino | first=Samantha Beech | title=New York City mayor announces plan to transport willing migrants to locations outside the city ahead of expected surge | website=CNN | date=May 6, 2023 | url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/05/us/nyc-tent-housing-migrant-surge/index.html | access-date=May 12, 2023}}</ref> A renovation of the Chess and Checkers House was completed in June 2023.<ref name="Wassef 2023 d709">{{cite web | last=Wassef | first=Mira | title=Central Park's Chess and Checkers House gets makeover | website=PIX11 | date=June 27, 2023 | url=https://pix11.com/news/local-news/central-parks-chess-and-checkers-house-reopens-after-remodel/ | access-date=June 28, 2023}}</ref> The Central Park Conservancy allocated $64 million in early 2024 to fix sidewalks on 108 blocks immediately surrounding the park.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Kodé|first1=Anna|last2=Srivastava|first2=Maansi|date=2024-03-15|title=Fixing Central Park's Bumpy Sidewalks|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/15/realestate/central-park-sidewalk-restoration.html|access-date=2024-03-18|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>