By Allison Perrine
MONMOUTH COUNTY – Fourteen local municipalities have received open space grants totaling over $2.4 million to improve their parks and open spaces this year.
In the Two River area, that includes Little Silver, Middletown, Red Bank and Tinton Falls. Other towns receiving grants this year are Bradley Beach, Marlboro, Matawan, Union Beach, Aberdeen, Freehold, Allentown, Manasquan, Howell and Eatontown.
ABOUT OPEN SPACE
This 50-50 matching grant program is administered by the Monmouth County Park System on behalf of the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders, which ulti- mately provides the funding and makes the final decisions on which towns get funding any given year.
The county sets aside $2 million each year for the Municipal Open Space grants, but in some years it can award more, said Paul Gleitz, a principal park planner with the park system. That typically happens after projects come in under budget or are withdrawn. This year, the total funds awarded equal $2,457,000.
Each municipality is permitted to make one open space grant application per year, with a maximum matching award of $250,000. In 2019, 25 Monmouth County municipalities applied and 14 were selected.
Acquisition projects are typically ranked the highest on the list of projects to fund because it brings new open space areas to the county, said Gleitz. Next are development projects, which tend to score higher because they ser ve broader needs, he said, like fixing up boat ramps or creating new playgrounds. Then, there are new courts that serve local needs, followed by upgrading and rehabilitating existing facilities and providing funding for maintenance work.
“We really want them to be doing something new,” or to help a broader audience, said Gleitz. But the program takes into account the creativity of the projects, past performances, etc. “It all gets rolled together.”
MIDDLETOWN
Middletown Township received the largest grant of the Two River area towns this year, collecting $250,000 for improvements to Normandy Park on Nutswamp Road. The work will include two multiuse turf fields striped for soccer, lacrosse and field hockey. Officials expect upgrades to begin in early spring 2020.
“There is tremendous demand on fields from various leagues, especially soccer and lacrosse,” Tony Mercantante, township administrator, told The Two River Times when plans were announced in December.
Don Kameno, president of the Middletown Soccer Club, said that soccer terrain has evolved from all players competing on fields designed for traditional 11 versus 11, full-sided soccer fields, to now include small-sided fields for seven or nine players per team. “As a result, additional fields are required to support this change,” he said at the time. “There are more teams in the younger ages,” he said, where team rosters are usually smaller than 11 per side.
The change in field requirements has also limited the township’s ability to properly maintain and rest grass fields, said Kameno. Increasing the number of synthetic turf fields will give the township the “ability to rest grass fields and keep them in better and safer playing condition,” Mercantante said.
TINTON FALLS
Tinton Falls and Red Bank both received $200,000 grants for projects in their areas. In Tinton Falls, that means developing the future Traditions Park on the west side of Wardell Road, just south of Appaloosa Run. The park will be about two acres of the total 45-acre property. It was previously obtained through an open space grant, state Depar tment of Environmental Protection Green Acres funding and the borough’s Open Space Trust Fund, according to Thomas Fallon, the acting borough administrator. It has been vacant for several years.
The proposal is to construct two new tennis courts and two pickleball courts. They will be interchangeable and could be altered after construction for up to three tennis courts or six pickleball courts, said Fallon. Plans also include a new basketball court with bleachers, a “state-of-the-art” playground and swing set with a rubber safety surface, shade trees and a new parking lot with about parking 25 spaces.
Existing open space surrounding Traditions Park will be preserved and can be used for passive recreation space for residents “who prefer less strenuous activities,” Fallon added. It will also include a wildlife conservation area to provide refuge to several indigenous species, he said. Tinton Falls has needed public tennis courts for many years, said Fallon. Though there are a few courts nearby in townhouse communities, they are private and are only available to residents of those developments. And some of those courts are not maintained and fall into disrepair, he added.
“Numerous residents have been requesting tennis courts for many years. The borough offers many activities for children and teenagers, but fewer options for adults. Many residents feel that tennis courts would provide a new recreation opportunity for adults,” said Fallon.
Pickleball has become increasingly popular and the town has heard several requests for courts over the years. “Borough officials have received complaints from residents of the Seabrook Senior Living Community that although they have their own private courts, they are often full and there are not enough tennis/pickleball courts in the borough,” Fallon said.
RED BANK
In Red Bank, the grant will help bring the second phase of park improvements in town at East Side Park and Mohawk Pond Park, and the adjacent Count Basie Park. The first phase of work began in 2015 thanks to an open space grant. According to the application, the total project cost will be $500,968. Phase II work at East Side Park will include the reconstruction of a baseball field, featuring backstop, fencing and dugouts, as well as surfacing and edging of existing playground equipment. Phase I work provided the construction of a prefabricated restroom facility with an overhead pavilion for picnic tables, the application states, and the reconstruction of the walkways at the site.
At Mohawk Pond Park, as part of Phase II work, a steel pavilion with outdoor grills and picnic tables will be added to enhance outdoor activities at the park, such as fishing. “The addition of these elements would provide all the necessary amenities to the park” and complement the stocked trout pond, according to the application. From the 2015 grant, the first phase of work provided improvements to the parking lot and walkways around the edge of the pond. And at nearby Count Basie Park, new solar lighting at the existing baseball fields and basketball courts will be added to provide extended park hours.
According to the application, Red Bank is home to 12,206 residents and 4,929 households. It ranks 61st of the 566 densely populated towns in the state and fifth of the 56 towns in Monmouth County. And according to population growth forecasts, Red Bank is expected to expand 0.3 percent each year, “leading to needed expansion of green space and recreation options within the borough,” the application continues. “In expanding these three existing parks, the borough would be establishing ‘land for park, recreation and open space purposes where development pressures are at the highest’ in accordance with the goals of the Monmouth County Open Space Grant Program.”
LITTLE SILVER
Little Silver was awarded a $74,000 grant to make improvements to the parking lot, walkways and picnic area for Sickles Park on Rumson Road and Parker Homestead 1665 – a National Historic Site.
According to borough administrator Kimberly Jungfer, access to the park will be changed from Rumson Road to Harrison Avenue, which will eliminate the loop off Rumson Road and make the entrance and exit to that area at one spot.
“The change will allow for additional parking for both Sickles Park, which is much needed, and Parker Homestead 1665. It will provide a covered picnic area and a path from the parking area to the playground area at Sickles,” she said.
Mayor Bob Neff said one of the greatest benefits of adding additional parking spaces, potentially between 30 to 50 new spots, is that it will prevent children and families from having to park across the street when the current spots are filled. “You’ve got kids walking across that street during busy season for the fields,” he said. “The town will work with the Parker Homestead trustees to come to an agreeable plan” that will help the parking situation but also maintain the historic charm of the farmhouse.
This article originally appeared in the Feb. 6, 2020 print edition of The Two River Times.
