Freehold Borough's Liberty Park Awarded $250K From County

Freehold NJ

23 December, 2020

3:35 PM

Description

FREEHOLD, NJ – Monmouth County recently awarded a total $3.47 million in grants to parks in 23 towns through the 2020 round of the Municipal Open Space Grant (MOSG) program. Of the funds available, Freehold Borough's Liberty Park was awarded $250,000 for improvements. The MOSG program is sponsored by the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders and is the primary method in which the county assists local recreation departments. This program provides vital funding to municipalities in order to meet needs relating to open space acquisition, recreation and historic conservation. This year, a total of 31 applications were received requesting a total of $5,469,000. Another $2 million in grant funds, combined with $1.47 million of redistributed grant funds, allowed the county to award a total of $3.47 million in grant funding. "The MOSG program is an example of how the County works cooperatively and successfully to ensure local park needs are met, especially during this uniquely challenging time when residents need access to parks more than ever to support their mental and physical health," said Freeholder Director Thomas A. Arnone. "The County is proud to offer this successful grant program to all Monmouth County municipalities. Each year, we receive more grant requests than we have funding available and we have to make tough award decisions," said Freeholder Lillian G. Burry, liaison to the Monmouth County Park System. "This year, we had a record number of applications as towns work hard to meet the increased park demands in their community." Here are the municipalities that received funding during the 2020 grant round: Township of Neptune Sunshine Village Park - Pump Track $250,000 Borough of Tinton Falls Liberty Park - Dog Park Improvements $127,000 Borough of Interlaken Bridlemere Park - Improvements $175,000 Borough of Allentown George Ashby Memorial Park Phase II $125,000 Township of Millstone Millstone Park Phase II Improvements $250,000 Township of Shrewsbury Improvements to Eloise Nagel Park $115,000 Borough of West Long Branch Owen Farm, Franklin Lake, Sorrentino and Ronan Shirvanian Park -Improvements $175,000 City of Asbury Park Sunset Lake & Springwood Avenue Parks - Improvements $250,000 Borough of Spring Lake Heights Shore Road Park Improvements $125,000 Borough of Neptune City Adams Field - Improvements $250,000 Borough of Freehold Liberty Park Improvements $250,000 Borough of Sea Girt Edgemere Park - Phase I $20,000 Borough of Lake Como Lake Como - Passive Recreation Improvements $200,000 Borough of Spring Lake Lake Como - Improvements $200,000 Township of Wall Community Park South - Phase II $125,000 Borough of Sea Bright Shrewsbury Riverfront Park - Phase II $80,000 Township of Holmdel Allocco Park Playground Improvements $200,000 Borough of Manasquan Curtis & Skokus Park - Playgrounds - Phase I $90,000 Borough of Oceanport Community Center Park - Improvements $150,000 City of Long Branch Lake Takanassee Beautification $40,000 Borough of Eatontown Wampum Park - Site and ADA Upgrades $50,000 Borough of Avon Recreation Facility Improvements $15,000 Borough of Atlantic Highlands Many Mind Park Improvements $85,000 Since the program began in 2003, 47 of Monmouth County's 53 municipalities have been awarded more than $34 million for local parks and acquisition projects. As of 2020, 233 grants have been awarded with 173 grants going toward parks development projects and 60 of the grant awards going toward open space acquisition projects. Another $2 million has been allocated for the 2020 round of grant funding, bringing the total allocated through the program to $36 million.