Glen Oaks, Floral Park and New Hyde Park

Understanding Glen Oaks, Floral Park and New Hyde Park

After the area's agricultural period, Glen Oaks Village was built in 1947 to provide housing for returning service members. Its low garden apartments follow curved streets. The original rental complex became a cooperative in 1981.

The public park was assembled from city parcels in 1938 and 1948. It later carried Jerry Tenney's name before returning to Glen Oaks Oval in 2009. The 2021 work added play structures and an adult fitness area in place of the basketball court.

The library that opened in 2013 offers a different kind of neighborhood architecture. Marble Fairbanks brought daylight down through sidewalk skylights; multilingual lettering is etched into its glass exterior.

The housing landscape continued to change after Glen Oaks Village. Parks traces the neighborhood name to a 1920s golf course and records North Shore Towers’ completion on the former course in 1974. The low garden apartments and later high-rise development represent different stages of growth near the county line.

A 2013 City Planning report describes Floral Park's detached Cape Cod and ranch houses, a contrast with Glen Oaks' garden apartments. The area's postwar growth also shaped its institutions. Our Lady of the Snows began with a Mass in an open field in 1948 and used temporary worship spaces before its later buildings.

Places to explore

• Glen Oaks Library

  256-04 Union Turnpike

  Look at the glass exterior and the relationship between the sidewalk and reading spaces. Inside, choose reading, computer access or an activity from the current branch calendar. The operator lists wheelchair access.

• Glen Oaks Oval

  74th Avenue and 260th Street

  Choose the playground or adult fitness area. The park's layout sits within the surrounding apartment neighborhood; use the current park information before planning a particular activity.

• Glen Oaks Village streetscape

  Public streets around Glen Oaks Oval

  Compare the low garden-apartment buildings and curved street layout from public space. The cooperative's courts, playgrounds and other resident amenities are not established as public attractions.

• Hillside Playground

  82nd Avenue and 256th Street

  Choose a play or court visit using the park’s current information. The City acquired this site in 1948, and its later name refers to nearby Hillside Avenue. This public playground is separate from the cooperative’s private resident amenities.

• Our Lady of the Snows Church

  258-15 80th Avenue; church on 259th Street

  Choose worship from the parish's current schedule or view the building from public space. Its 2008 church incorporates stained glass from the former Our Lady of the Skies chapel at JFK. Contact the parish about entry and access needs; the school and other parish buildings are separate from a church visit.

Planning a visit

Choose the library, oval or church before checking current MTA travel information. For the church, use the parish’s 259th Street location between Union Turnpike and 80th Avenue.

Check the park approach and equipment for your visit. Ask the parish about the service you wish to attend and any access arrangements.