Forest Park

This triangle is named for Jayne Carlson (1946-2000), an active member of the Richmond Hill community. Except for three childhood years, she lived in Richmond Hill her entire life, attending the area public schools and graduating from Richmond Hill High School. From 1984 to 1994, she worked in Richmond Hill High School as an aide and supervisor in the computer lab. Over the last 20 years of her life, she served as Vice-President of the Richmond Hill Block Association and helped their annual Park Fair grow from 250 attendees in its first year to over 50,000 in recent years. Carlson was also instrumental in creating the annual Gift to Forest Park that the Richmond Hill Block Association sponsors each year. And when Parks needed additional funding for the Schaefer Memorial in Forest Park, Carlson made sure that Park Fair funds were made available to help finish the project. From 1973 to 1982, Carlson sat on the executive board of the PTA of P.S. 66, which her children attended. She was also a member of the Parents Association at Archbishop Molloy High School. Carlson founded the Coalition to Save Engine 294 in 1975 (and again in 1990), when the local firehouse was closed down.

As vast as Carlson’s contributions were to Richmond Hill, they were not restricted just to the local community. She was also active in several organizations associated with the New York City Fire Department, where her husband Howard Carlson, Chief of Battalion 51 in Richmond Hill, has worked for 32 years. She was an active volunteer with the New York Firefighters Burn Center Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports the New York Firefighters Burn Center located at New York Hospital on York Avenue and 70th Street in Manhattan. The Foundation not only raises money for the Burn Center, but also provides much-needed support for injured firemen and their families. As a member of the New York Fire Department Anchor Club, Carlson visited and entertained patients throughout the metropolitan area. Jayne Carlson died in 2000, after a 10-year illness. In addition to her husband Howard, she left behind two children, William and Catherine Scutellaro.

Jayne Carlson Triangle lies adjacent to Jackson Pond Playground, at Myrtle Avenue and Park Lane South. The parcel was acquired by the City of Brooklyn between 1895 and 1898, and became property of the City of New York upon Consolidation in 1898. The playground is named for Jarvis Jackson, former Park Superintendent of Forest Park. A mansion, once owned by Mayor Abram Hewitt (1822-1903) and dry goods merchant Alexander Field, once sat on the hill north of what is now Myrtle Avenue and 108th Street. The City of Brooklyn acquired the parcel sometime between 1895 and 1898, and the City of New York acquired it on January 1, 1898, after the consolidation of the five boroughs. Jackson and other park officials then occupied the mansion until 1941, when the mansion was torn down to make way for a playground. Today the triangle is planted with grass, trees, and a small flowerbed, serving as a lasting tribute to Jane Carlson.