NOVEMBER 09, 2017 • TIMES OF SMITHTOWN • PAGE A3
TOWN
State officials unveil $40M plan for Nissequogue park By Sara-Megan WalSh sara@tbrnewspapers.com
New York State officials have revealed a $40 million proposal for the next phase of Nissequogue River State Park development. The state Department of Environmental Conservation, in partnership with the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, held two public presentations Nov. 2 at the Kings Park Fire Department for Phase 3 of rehabilitation and restoration of Nissequogue River State Park, built on the former grounds of the Kings Park Psychiatric Center. Wayne Horsley, regional director for the state office of parks, said that with Phase 3 residents will start to see a substantial improvement in the park. “This is a community effort; Nissequogue River State Park is worth the effort,” he said. “The park is going to come to life. This will be a positive thing for everybody concerned.” At the center of the preliminary plan is the construction of a new 25,000 squarefoot headquarters for the DEC’s Division of Marine Resources in the existing footprint of Building 40, the former child care center, which would be demolished. The move would bring more than 100 DEC employees in the marine fisheries, marine habitat, shellfisheries and oceans program bureaus to Kings Park. It would also house the DEC’s Marine Enforcement unit and bring yearround law enforcement into the park.
Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh
a state official and residents discuss plans for Phase 3 of the nissequogue river State Park rehabilitation revealed nov. 2. above, Wayne horsley, the state’s regional director of parks, at the nov. 2 meeting. “This is a much more ideal place for us,” said James Gilmore, director of the DEC’s Marine Resources Division. “Having a marine program next to the water makes so much more sense than where we are right now, in a medical park that’s six miles from the water.” The $26 million building would also be equipped with the state’s only FDA-certified shellfish laboratory, for testing and maintaining the health and safety of harvested shellfish, in addition to a marine permit office.
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Construction of the new facility is expected to begin in the winter of 2018 with a targeted completion date of winter of 2020. The DEC would also partner with the state parks’ office to design and construct a brand new marina. With a proposed $8 million budget, a new Nissequogue State Park Marina would be built to the south of the existing marina with a 151-boat capacity, new year-round floating docks, boat pump-out facility, comfort station including restrooms
and improved parking area for boaters. “The advantages I think are pretty clear,” said Craig Green, with the consulting firm D&B Engineers and Architects that has been hired to oversee engineering and design of Phase 3. “It would provide new facilities. It has capacity for existing boats plus DEC’s boats, greater security, better lighting and better access to the boats.”
NISSEQUOGUE Continued on page A13
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