PORT JERVIS – A $488,000
grant to build the Promenade Park on Front Street in Port Jervis remains
unclaimed after 13 years. Mayor Kelly Decker blames the state Department
of Transportation for a lack of movement.
The mayor said the DOT kept adding conditions onto the project, including the hiring of an engineer to oversee the construction. Those costs pushed the project cost up to about $768,000.
So, the city now has until September 30 to tell the state if they will build the park. If not, they will forfeit the original grant.
“If we do the project it is going to cost us $430,000 more or if we don’t do the project, it is going to cost the city $125,000 in engineering fees,” Decker said.
He said the city had great plans to transform that area into a park for shoppers when they are downtown.
