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Council discusses Lakeside Park improvements; borough targets Mueller property, seeks county grant
Summary
Council members opened a public hearing on Lakeside Park upgrades and discussed prioritizing work on the Mueller property access and safety features while including pavilion repairs in a county Open Space Trust Fund grant request; the borough said coordination with an upcoming DOT paving and guardrail project could reduce costs.
The council held a public hearing on proposed Lakeside Park improvements and discussed a grant application to the Passaic County Open Space Trust Fund that prioritizes work at the Mueller property while including pavilion repairs if funding allows.
Borough staff told the council the borough had a limited window to submit one or two ranked grant requests to the county. The administration proposed prioritizing the Mueller property — including replacing a chain-link fence, improving access and adding safety features such as guardrails and shore-side safety improvements — and using any remaining grant funds for repairs or replacement of the Lakeside Park pavilion. Staff cited a rough estimate that fully replacing the pavilion (including slab, electrical and lighting) with a steel structure could exceed $400,000.
Council and staff said timing aligns with a separate DOT municipal paving grant to repave Lakeside Avenue (Jefferson to Van Avenue) in a coming year; that paving project includes guardrail installation in accordance with DOT standards, and borough staff said coordinating the two projects could allow removal of the existing fence and timely guardrail installation without duplicate work.
The council also discussed options and clarified that the grant submission had a broad scope to allow later refinement and that the borough's open-space committee prioritized the Mueller property. The public hearing was opened and closed without members of the public asking questions on the specific grant submission. Council voted to close the hearing and proceed with grant submittal in the manner discussed.
Quotes "The Mueller property has a chain-link fence on it right now. ... It is good timing with the Passaic County Open Space Trust Fund because the access to the Mueller property can be addressed as part of the new guardrail that will go in next year as part of our paving project," the borough administrator said.
Ending Staff said a final project scope will be refined if the borough is awarded county funds and will be coordinated with the DOT paving and guardrail project to minimize costs and to address safe access to the Mueller property.
