My neighbor's son told me a similar tale. He is a 65+ retired college professor but was a hooligan in his youth.

Jackson Heights was mostly open fields when a developer decided to   put up a school on the old golf course.

Duncan (about 8 or 9) conspired with his friends to prevent the outrage. Late at night they built a wall of mortar and bricks across 37th Ave - a four lane street. The unwitting contrator provided all but the labor. No one ever figured out who did it and the school went up anyway but...