Grant will fund upgrades to Manahassett Park

Grant will fund upgrades to Manahassett Park
BY KENNY WALTER Staff Writer

LONG BRANCH — City officials announced last week that they have received additional funding from the state for improvements to the city's newest and largest park.

Chief Financial Officer Ronald Mehlhorn Sr. said at the Nov. 10 City Council workshop session that the city will receive about $1 million in Green Acres grant funds to construct a building at Manahassett Creek Park.

"The state had originally given us $1.2 million," he said. "Now they are going to give us $1 million more, and we are going to have to match the $1 million."

Mehlhorn said the state is most likely going to accept previous money spent by the city as its match for the additional funding.

"We actually did a bond ordinance for $2.6 million to complete that project," he said. "They will probably take that as our match.

"In reality, the million dollars that we already spent is fine in terms of our match," he added. "There is a 99.9 percent chance they will accept that."

The 20-plus-acre park was opened Aug. 19 and includes two soccer fields, two softball fields, two tennis courts, two basketball courts, a full baseball field and a football field.

Also included are a fitness trail and a putting green.

Business Administrator Howard H. Woolley explained what the money is going to be used for.

"The Green Acres grant is some additional funding," Woolley said. "The plan is a refreshment stand and bathrooms."

Woolley said the city had planned to put the building in but did not have the funding at the time.

"We planned for a building, but we never got it built," he said. "There will be some storage, some bathrooms in there and a refreshment stand."

Woolley said that if there is any money left over, the city may look to improve some other parks.

"We will use leftover money for whatever else might need to be done, or some improvements we'd like to make at some of the other parks," he said.

Woolley also described some proposed improvements to the park that the city will use existing funds for.

"There are a few things that we didn't quite foresee properly, but I think on a project of this size, that is inevitable," he said. "The contractor and the engineer stepped up and are doing a couple of things right now."

Woolley said the three main changes needed are: widening the pathway, moving the fences at the football field, and improving drainage on one of the roads.

"We looked at the path, and it is too narrow in some areas," he said, "so we can get all our vehicles that we need to work in the park in there.

"We asked the contractor to give us a price to widen it, and that is part of this," he added.

Moving the fencing, Woolley said, is necessary for safety reasons.

"The Pop Warner league came to us and said they were concerned," Woolley said. "Someone could be driven out of bounds; it could be a safety issue.

"Thankfully, we haven't had anybody hurt, and the season's over," he added. "We've been lucky, but we don't want to rely on luck."

Woolley said the plan is to make the fencing movable.

"They are only going to be put out when the games are on," he said.

Woolley also explained the drainage problems.

"We are doing some improvements to a dead-end street [where] water is retained," he said. "We have some runoff from the park. We basically have to build a roadway so it drains out."

Woolley said there are a few more issues with the park that the city plans to address, and that the reception to the park has been positive.

"On the whole, it's been really successful," he said.

He said the Pop Warner program is especially grateful for the park, since the program hasn't had a true home for a few years.

"That program didn't have a home field for four or five years," he said. "It's really great we've given them a place to play."

The city started planning the park in 2002 and broke ground in 2008. Precise Construction was awarded the $3.9 million contract in May 2008 after coming in as the lowest bidder. Plans for the park were designed by D.W. Smith Associates.

Contact Kenny Walter at

kwalter@gmnews.com.