A public park in Clifton Twp. is still taking shape more than two years after the board of supervisors made the controversial decision to buy the parcel of land on which it sits for $180,000.
A sign now sits along Clifton Beach Road, marking the Clifton Acres park.
Although the area is accessible to the public, June Ejk, the board's chairwoman, said the park is still approximately 40 acres of undeveloped woods for now.
The total parcel was about 50 acres. Ms. Ejk said the board subdivided the land about a month ago to add 10 acres to the adjacent Municipal Building's property for future use that may include placing a recycling center there.
Ms. Ejk said a recently received $77,000 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources will offset some of the cost of the land purchase.
Supervisors do not want local taxpayers to have to pay for additional expenses to develop the park, she said, and at the end of the year, township officials will apply for grants to get the ball rolling.
The first step will be developing a site plan to determine how the land can be used when funding is secured.
Ms. Ejk said the site plan, which she estimated will cost $10,000 to $20,000 to develop, will be particularly important because the property has some wetlands that cannot be used. After that, she envisions the park remaining a largely wooded area with some walking and hiking trails to be created with grant money.
Some local parks have paved areas and facilities like baseball fields, but at Clifton Acres, "the terrain is a little rougher than that," Ms. Ejk said.
While officials wait to apply for grants, the township has applied for a permit through the state Department of Transportation to create a nonpaved road into the park.
Lori Yacabitis and fellow recreation committee member Richard Batzel expressed excitement about the park's potential and envision residents enjoying recreation opportunities there, like hiking, biking, cross country skiing and youth fishing derbies.
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