Previously Hudson Park (and before that St. John's Cemetery and then St. John's Park), James J. Walker Park dates back to 1895[1]. It is bounded by the Tony Dapolito Recreation Center (formerly the Carmine Bath House), Clarkson Street, Hudson Street, and Leroy Street in Greenwich Village, Manhattan. James J. Walker, better known as Jimmy or "Beau James", was the flamboyant and scandalous mayor of New York City from 1926 to 1932 (read about him). The park went though many incarnations and redesigns, including in the late 1930s when it was totally reconstructed by the WPA and reopened in June 1940[2]:

The reconstructed Hudson Park, Clarkson and Hudson Streets, Manhattan, will reopen, without ceremony, on the same date [June 6, 1940]. This area which formerly contained en earth-surfaced baseball diamond unusable after rain storms and recurrent periods of freeze and thaw, has been redesigned to provide recreational facilities for all age groups all year round. There is now a Softball diamond with concrete bleachers for spectators, a basketball court for juniors, and a basketball court for seniors, six double handball courts, and a boccie court. The entire play area has been asphalt-surfaced so that it can be used for roller skating and ice skating during the winter months when sub-freezing temperatures permit. It will also bo floodlighted so that those who have to work during daylight hours may got much needed recreation after working hours. The reopening of these two improvements designed by the Park Department and constructed by the Work Projects Administration, makes a total of 329 new or reconstructed recreational areas completed by the Park Department since January 1, 1934.

Of course the park has been reconfigured since then; now it has a soccer field and updated play areas. But it still has the original WPA bocce court and matching concrete structures in the sitting area.

1. James J. Walker Park - History, NYC Department of Parks website (fails to mention WPA).
2. NYC Department of Parks Press Release, June 6, 1940.