Elmhurst Park

The site held two KeySpan Newtown gas holders, the Elmhurst gas tanks, built in 1910 and 1921 and standing 200 feet high; because the Long Island Expressway frequently became congested there, "backup at the Elmhurst Gas Tanks" became a familiar phrase in radio traffic reporting. Accounts of their removal differ: the New York Times reported on September 20, 1993 that the tanks "are down, deflated forever, their skeletal remains waiting to be dismantled"; the Queens Tribune wrote that "they came down in 1996"; Wikipedia says the gas storage facilities were removed in 2001. NYC Parks records that "the site was sold by KeySpan to the City of New York for $1 and was cleaned up and returned to the public as open space."