John Paulson Donates $100 Million to Central Park

John A Paulson, President and Portfolio Manager of Paulson & Co, together with the Paulson Family Foundation donated $100 million to the Central Park Conservancy today in an effort to sustain the “fundamental role” of Central Park as the world’s most extraordinary public park.

This donation is the largest gift the Central Park Conservancy has ever received and is also the largest monetary contribution ever given to a public park.  The donation is expected to sustain the Conservancy’s management and maintenance of the park as well as give the Conservancy the ability to apply improvements park-wide. Central Park hosts 40 million visitors annually, has 21 playgrounds, 130 acres of woodlands, five visitor centers, a number of recreation facilities and youth and family programming in which the Central Park Conservancy holds responsibility.

"Central Park was created by two individuals — Olmsted and Vaux — in 1858. In 1980, a group of individuals banded together to restore it to its long-forgotten glory," said Doug Blonsky, President and CEO of the Central Park Conservancy. "Today, John joins these visionaries to sustain Central Park well into the future. This has always been a park designed for and sustained by the people - a celebration of the people's right to relax, reflect and celebrate. John shares that vision, and thanks to him Central Park's purpose will endure."

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Paulson is a billionaire hedge fund manager that additionally serves on the Board of Trustees of the Central Park Conservancy, the Board of Trustees of New York University, Board of Trustees of the Spence School, the Deans Advisory Board of the Harvard Business School, the Board of Directors of the 92nd Street Y, the Board of the Partnership for New York City and the Chairman’s Circle of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

“It is a great privilege to be able to contribute to the Central Park Conservancy, one of the most important cultural institutions in New York,” said Mr. Paulson. “The Conservancy is responsible for transforming and sustaining Central Park as the celebration of culture, nature and democracy that it is today. It is my hope that today’s contribution will help it endure and flourish and inspire others to join me in ensuring that the Park continues to receive the support it needs to be this city’s greatest asset.”