City wants $95,000 more for pocket park

Lambertville has a $150,000 state grant for the park on Connaught Hill and wants more money from its share of county open space funds.

By: Linda Seida
   LAMBERTVILLE — The city is asking the county’s Open Space Trust Fund for almost $95,000 to pay for a new pocket park on Connaught Hill.
   The money is a portion of the funds Lambertville has been banking with the county — or setting aside — for years. It can be used for any eligible open-space project.
   Lambertville and other municipalities are entitled to 15 percent of the open space funds collected and sent to the county in 2006. In previous years, before the freeholders approved an increase, municipalities were entitled to 10 percent of the funds. In the past five years, the county has collected more than $580,000 in open space tax from Lambertville.
   In a resolution authorized Nov. 2, the mayor and members of the City Council agreed to ask the county for a total of $94,783.05.
   The Arnett family donated some of the land for the park, which will be called Arnett Park in their honor. The Hancock Street site will be the first park for residents of the hill.
   The open space funds "should cover everything," Mayor David Del Vecchio said.
   It will buy the remainder of the land needed and pay for related fees, including the services of lawyers and engineers.
   Last year, the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs awarded $150,000 to Lambertville for the park’s construction.
   More details about the park should be available during the council’s December meeting, Mayor Del Vecchio said. Early plans call for playground equipment, benches and restrooms.
   Connaught Hill was not always a spot where one could envision a quiet park for playful children, but in recent years the city embarked on a cleanup of the neighborhood. Old tires and refuse were removed, and abandoned vehicles were eliminated. Also, Habitat for Humanity constructed several new homes on the hill.