Proposal to install sediment filters and walking path at Silven Lake moves forward with county grant application

At a public workshop, borough and engineering staff described a two-part municipal-park improvement grant application for Silven Lake that pairs park expansion and visitor amenities with measures to limit sediment inflow.

Planner Ben (presented as “Ben”) said the proposal includes narrowing parts of Bradley Boulevard to add a porous walking path, landscaping, benches and stormwater sediment-filtration devices: one large device at an outfall parcel and multiple smaller devices along Bradley Boulevard to capture runoff before it reaches the lake. The borough plans to submit separate applications for two municipal portions; each municipality would be eligible for up to $500,000 from the county on a 50/50 match. Bradley Beach’s portion was estimated at roughly $1.2 million.

Council members and residents pressed the team on tree impacts and whether the grant could pay for dredging. Ben and the CFO explained dredging is an eligible activity under the program but the typical $500,000 match alone is insufficient for full-scale lake dredging, which would require multimillion-dollar funding sources. For that reason, the borough is pursuing a combination of pre-treatment (filtration devices) through the park-grant application while applying to larger programs for dredging.

Public commenter Greg Farenbach urged prioritizing sediment removal over “cosmetic” boulevard improvements and noted past discussions about combining consecutive grant cycles to assemble a larger funding package for dredging. Council voted to approve the related resolution to move the grant application process forward.

Councilmembers said the borough expects grant awards in fall 2026, design and permitting through 2027, and likely construction in fall 2027 if awarded.