Government

FRNCA awarded $50,000 grant for Riverside Maritime Trail Park

The Flanders, Riverside and Northampton Community Association (FRNCA) has won a $50,000 grant to help build the Riverside Maritime Trail Park along the Peconic River in Riverside.

The state Environmental Justice grant, aimed at “underserved communities,” will be used to hire a landscape architect to design and plan the park and to implement several wetland restoration projects along the Peconic River, according to Southampton Town.

The town will assist FRNCA in managing the grant by procuring the design consultant and other planning services.

The proposed trail route would run near Vail Avenue from Flanders Road to the Peconic River.

“This is a very important project for the revitalization plan for Riverside,” FRNCA vice president Vince Taldone said in a press release announcing the grant. “The new park will provide access to the waterfront for residents who have had little in the way of recreational facilities despite living so close to the river.”

FRNCA president Ron Fisher described the grant as a “huge first step in our goal to provide the poorest area of town with access to the Peconic River.”

In addition to the grant, $7,000 raised from the three-day Flanders Food Truck Festival will go toward community improvements. Proceeds from the event, which was co-sponsored by FRNCA, Truth Community Church and Riverside Rediscovered, will be divided among local charities and community groups. The FRNCA board will vote on how to distribute the funds at its next meeting June 12.

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Photo credit: Tim Gannon