Bayonne park renovation will add new pickleball courts at Russell Golding Park

Bayonne’s newest pickleball space is coming as part of a full park rebuild, not a stand-alone courts project. At Russell Golding Park, the city has launched a nearly one-acre total renovation that will include pickleball courts, an open-air shelter for basketball and pickleball, new lighting, playgrounds, basketball courts, exercise equipment and a spray park.

The groundbreaking was held May 4 at the park on Avenue E between 48th and 51st Streets, putting the project into construction after years of funding work. Public Works Director Tom Cotter called it a “total renovation,” and the city said the work is being paid for with $5.75 million in public money, including a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and $750,000 from the Hudson County Open Space, Recreation, and Historic Preservation Trust Fund.

For pickleball players, the practical takeaway is clear: Bayonne is adding another place to play, but the courts are being built inside a broader neighborhood upgrade designed for multiple uses. The new lighting should extend the park’s utility beyond daytime hours, and the open-air shelter signals that the city expects the basketball and pickleball areas to be used as everyday recreation spaces rather than specialty courts sitting off to the side.

The park carries extra local weight because it is named for Fire Captain Russell Golding, who led recreational activities for children before his death in 1970. Congressman Rob Menendez first announced the HUD funding in 2023, saying the project would completely reconstruct the park and help support Bayonne’s Ability Camp for youth living with disabilities. That gives the renovation a purpose beyond recreation alone, tying the court buildout to access and programming for families as well.

City Council President and Third Ward Council Member Gary LaPelusa called the groundbreaking a great day for Bayonne and thanked Menendez for helping secure the federal support behind the project. Representatives from Picerno-Giordano Construction and Center State Engineering also took part in the ceremony, underscoring that the rebuild has moved from planning into the work of turning Russell Golding Park into a fuller recreation hub for the northern gateway to the city.