The historic Forest Park Carousel, shuttered for over a year, may spin again this summer.
The city Parks Department said it is in negotiations with a new concessionaire to operate the carousel, a hand-carved treasure that dates back to the early 1900s.
City Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley (D-Middle Village), who has been pushing Parks officials to find a new vendor, said it is slated to reopen by mid-July.
The carousel fell silent after the previous vendor, New York One LLC, let its contract expire last year. Civic leaders complained that the company allowed the carousel and the surrounding grounds to deteriorate.
Earlier this year, the Parks Department dismissed New York One as the vendor of the Central Park Carousel for failing to maintain and clean that famous attraction.
Local residents are hoping a new vendor will return the Forest Park Carousel to its former glory.
"I hope they are really vetting them well because we don't want another vendor coming in and abusing the area," said Maria Thomson of the Greater Woodhaven Development Corp. "It should be a destination and a place where people can go and enjoy the park."
The carousel was crafted by Daniel Carl Muller, considered by experts to be a master woodcarver of the genre. It's one of two Muller carousels still in operation. The other is in Ohio.
"It's priceless," said Patrick Wentzel, who keeps a census of carousels for the National Carousel Association. "The carvings are exquisite. They are so lifelike."
The carousel was brought to Forest Park from Massachusetts in the early 1970s to replace one that burned down nearly 10 years earlier.
But by the early 1980s, it had fallen into disrepair. Artist Marvin Sylvor stepped in and meticulously renovated the carousel, which reopened to great fanfare in 1989.
But vendors have previously complained that the carousel, which is tucked away between Woodhaven Blvd. and the Forest Park Bandshell, has never been a moneymaker.
Wentzel said the NCA provides grants to help maintain historic carousels.
"The Forest Park Carousel is fun for children and nostalgic for adults - but it's also of interest to those who appreciate art and history," said Ed Wendell, president of the Woodhaven Residents' Block Association. "It is very unique, and if it's not taken care of it will be irreparably damaged and lost forever."
