Listen to this articleFive Long Island municipalities were awarded more than $3.72 million from the state’s Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP).
The money is part of $14.2 million of LWRP funds awarded to 21 communities statewide, according to an announcement Thursday from the New York State Department of State. The program provides grants to communities to develop plans that cultivate a vision for their waterfront, expanding public access, protecting the environment, while also boosting tourism and economic development opportunities. The awards cover a variety of planning, design and construction projects that focus on accessible economic, community, environmental and recreational improvements.
Suffolk County was awarded $2 million towards constructing improvements at Violet Cove, converting vacant land overlooking Moriches Bay into a recreational eco-destination. The project implements the draft Town of Brookhaven LWRP by expanding recreational amenities, utilizing nature-based techniques to mitigate flooding, and promoting education about the local ecosystem, climate resiliency and adaptation.
The City of Long Beach was awarded $170,000 towards preparing a resilient economic development planning study for its north shore bayfront along Reynolds Channel. The study will advance elements of the city’s LWRP under development and 2023 Comprehensive Plan by providing recommendations for sustainable land use, climate resiliency, and appropriate bayfront redevelopment.
The Town of Smithtown was awarded $1.2 million to design and construct improvements to Paul T. Given Park located at the headwaters of the Nissequogue River. The project will implement the town’s LWRP aiming to enhance public waterfront access and provide recreational amenities for visitors and residents.
The Village of Sag Harbor gets $90,000 to complete the update to its 2006 LWRP and Harbor Management Plan, providing recommendations to further protect and enhance waterfront assets while retaining and “preserving the small-scale seaport village character.”
The Village of Westhampton Beach was awarded $262,897 to complete its LWRP, with a focus on resiliency and planning for climate change, sea level rise, and environmental sustainability. The village will also design and reconstruct the existing degrading bulkhead at the end of Point Road in Pond Point to increase its resiliency to extreme weather events, wave and wake energy and storm surge.
The LWRP awards are funded through the state’s Environmental Protection Fund. The Department of State, through the Environmental Protection Fund, provides matching grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities.