New Springville-Willowbrook-Bulls Head-Travis

Understanding New Springville-Willowbrook-Bulls Head-Travis

Willowbrook’s streams attracted mills and factories before the area became more suburban. The park’s manmade lake and later recreation facilities form another layer of that landscape.

Freshkills’ former landfill is being converted in stages. Its engineered interior and publicly open edges have different access rules, so the full park outline is not a promise of unrestricted entry.

Bulls Head also has a postwar family-recreation history. Hillside Swim Club began in 1957 on Signs Road, among the low-rise housing and open spaces described in the city's planning report. It remains a private membership club.

Travis was once Linoleumville, a company town for the American Linoleum Company. Factory work and housing developed together before the town took its later name. The landscape then changed again as industry and the Fresh Kills landfill expanded.

Father Macris Park occupies land acquired for the Staten Island Expressway in 1958 and developed for recreation in 1999. Its name honors the pastor who served Holy Trinity–Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Bulls Head from 1965 to 1989.

Places to explore

• Father Macris Park

  Fahy Avenue and Lamberts Lane, south of the Staten Island Expressway

  Choose the public fields and open recreation space. Check field permits and current conditions through Parks before organizing a game.

• Staten Island Mall and seasonal Greenmarket

  2655 Richmond Avenue; market at Marsh Avenue and Ring Road

  For shopping or an indoor food stop, check individual tenants' hours and the mall's family-visit policies. GrowNYC operates a seasonal Saturday farm market in the commuter lot. Check the current season rather than assuming the market runs year-round.

• Willowbrook Park and Carousel for All Children

  Nearby, in the separate mapped Willowbrook Park area

  Choose the lake and public paths, or check the Carousel for All Children's season before planning a ride. Its carved animals and Staten Island panels give the carousel a local role; no complete transit-to-trail accessible route has been assessed.

• Schmul Park

  Wild Avenue, Pearson Street and Melvin Avenue, Travis

  The playground, courts and lawn offer a neighborhood visit at one named Freshkills access point. Consult the Alliance for onward travel: publicly open edges and scheduled access to the engineered interior have different rules.

Planning a visit

Hillside Swim Club is a private Bulls Head facility, with new memberships limited to family and friends of existing members and requiring three qualifying sponsors. It is included as historical context, not as a public swimming stop.