Westchester County Executive George Latimer, surrounded by a coterie of other officials, ceremoniously turned on the fountain at Croton Gorge Park May 26, sending a 20-foot spray skyward after a decade of dormancy due to maintenance and reconstruction of the Croton Dam.
The fountain and Dam, owned by New York City’s Department of Environmental Protection, were built in 1906. Croton Gorge Park became a Westchester County Park during the 1960s.
The fountain operates from the head pressure of the reservoir being far enough above the fountain to preclude pumps. Water is piped through the Dam, underground, to the fountain. The overflow drains into the Croton River. Among Dam renovations over the years is a railing around the fountain.
“People have found parks to be very healing and naturally essential during this pandemic,” said Westchester County Parks and Recreation Commissioner Kathleen O’Connor, “and to turn on the fountain after 10 years is another great symbol of coming out of the dark.”
Croton Gorge Park, at 35 Yorktown Road in Croton-On-Hudson, is open seven days a week 8 a.m. to dusk.
