State Dollars For Napeague Trails

Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. announced last week that New York State has awarded $150,000 for improved hiking trails and expanded vehicle access in Napeague State Park, a 1,364-acre tract between Shipwreck and Marlin Drives and from the Atlantic Ocean across Montauk Highway to Lazy Point.

The park is one of 17 selected statewide to receive a total of $1.3 million in funding as part of the state’s commitment to improving parks and expanding access to outdoor recreation through the N.Y. Parks 2020 Plan. One of the goals of that plan is to open underutilized parkland to promote hiking and outdoor recreation. Another is to reconnect children to the outdoors.

The 2016-17 state budget allocates $90 million toward the N.Y. Parks 2020 Plan, which commits a total of $900 million in public and private funding between 2011 and 2020.