Residents pine for return of neighborhood park

Residents of the Hunts Point section of the Bronx are upset with the city’s delay to reopen a park that has been abandoned for seven years. 
The Longfellow Park between Longfellow Avenue and E. 165th Street is one of 67 parks in the city receiving a make-over according to a $360 million plan hashed out by Mayor Bill de Blasio.
The site was closed in 2010 because of safety issues with materials sinking into the ground due to excavation and compacting soil, according to city officials.
However, according to the Parks Department, the plan to begin construction is still in its procurement phase.
Officials say construction has been delayed due to bidders dropping out.
Construction at Longfellow Park is expected to begin in the Spring of 2018 and could last for a year to a year and a half, park officials say.