By acreage, Pelham Bay Park is the largest park in the city. Its namesake is English settler Thomas Pell, who “purchased” 50,000 acres of land from the Siwanoy natives in 1654. It has many elements such as a golf course, beach, athletic field, historic mansion, and police shooting range. The least visited section of the park is the Pelham Bay Landfill, where the Hutchinson River widens into Eastchester Bay.
Looking at the bay from Pelham Bridge, the tree-covered Rodman Neck contrasts with the grassy artificial hilltop that is the landfill. With Shirley Chisholm State Park and Freshkills Park as precedents, will the public eventually have access to this landfill too?
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