Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo Memorial Spray Park To Open To Town Residents

ELWOOD, NY — The Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo Memorial Spray Park is scheduled to reopen Saturday, Town of Huntington officials announced. The facility, located at Elwood Park on Cuba Hill Road, will open for limited days and hours.

Town of Huntington children will have another way to cool off during a particularly hot Long Island summer. The spray park will only be available to residents, though they must reserve a time slot and wear a mask for entry. The park had been closed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

"With the success of the phased reopening of our beaches and the Dix Hills Pool, we are ready to open the Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo Memorial Spray Park at Elwood Park with similar safety precautions," Supervisor Chad A. Lupinacci said. "The spray park will be open, as usual, to Town of Huntington residents under 13 years of age and we will also have special accommodations for kids with special needs."

The park will be open seven days a week by reservation only to 50 people maximum at any given time. Masks are required for entry for visitors over the age of 2 and anywhere in the park not on the spray pad.

Click here to register for the Sgt. Paul Tuozzolo Memorial Spray Park. Phone assistance will be available by calling Parks and Recreation staff at 631-351-3089. Recreation I.D. Cards are not required, as they have not been for sale this season.

Only Town residents — and members of the Half Hollow Hills, Commack and Cold Spring Harbor School Districts, which are partially located within the Town — may register for a time slot at the spray park. A Driver’s License ID or other form of identification will be required as proof of residency to enter the spray park.

Spray park hours are as follows by appointment only:

Weekdays, Monday through Friday:

• 1 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. (through Aug. 14)
• Noon to 7:45 p.m. (starting Aug. 17)

Weekends & Holidays

• Noon to 7:45 p.m.

Exclusive hour for children with special needs; children under 13 with special needs have a choice between:

• Reserving a time slot during the public hours
• Visiting during an hour exclusively reserved for their use with no reservation required, on Thursdays from 11:00 a.m. to noon.

Water-use wheelchairs, thoroughly sanitized between each use, are available to children with special physical needs upon request.

Below are safety protocols the Town is taking:

• All staff must have their temperature taken and be asked whether he/she had:

1. COVID-19 symptoms in past 14 days;
2. Positive COVID-19 test in the past 14 days; and / or
3. Close or proximate contact with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 case in the past 14 days.

Responses must be reviewed and documented every day. If staff are showing any of the symptoms of COVID-19, such as fever, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, chills, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste or smell, or other symptoms listed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; they think they could have COVID-19; they have tested positive for COVID-19; they are awaiting the results of testing for COVID-19; or they have been in close contact with anyone in the four categories above, they will be denied entry.

• Masks must be worn during the entire visit for visitors over the age of 2, except on the spray pad.
• Masks are prohibited on the spray pad.
• Spray pad limited to 50 people maximum at any time.
• Practices will be implemented to maintain social distancing in small areas, such as bathrooms and seating areas.
• Common touch areas and bathrooms will be cleaned and sanitized regularly and frequently, as per Suffolk County Department of Health guidelines. Ongoing attention will be paid to the cleanliness of the bathrooms.

The water used in the spray park is not reused on the spray pad, as the water enters the spray equipment directly from the water main and then is recycled after use on the spray pad for irrigation at Elwood Park.