A Golden Anniversary for Green Acres

Newark will see more green in the next year.

That's a promise from Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. and state legislators who outlined plans for the creation of Essex County Riverfront Park in Newark's Ironbound. The officials made the announcement Friday at River Bank Park, while touting the 50th anniversary of the New Jersey Green Acres Program.

The new park, which will line roughly 20 square miles along the banks of the Passaic River and Newark Bay, will be developed by both the county and the City of Newark.

"We want to have passive, plus organized recreation. With all the development that is happening downtown, you have to have an outlet for the people that live in Newark, Essex County and people who visit here," said DiVincenzo. "There's no reason why we shouldn’t have what everybody else has in New Jersey."

The county executive said he originally sought $7.7 million from former Gov. Jon Corzine, but eventually received $10.8 million from current Gov. Chris Christie to purchase the property along the Passaic River. DiVincenzo said he hopes to open the park on July 1, 2012.

Permits for the project were obtained in February from the U.S. Department of Environmental Protection and U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. Then the river had to be cleaned of dioxin, the by-product that was used in Agent Orange and lead and arsenic that had been dumped in the river by former smelting plants alongside the river.

"Rather than seeing them sit there in their current state, government leaders and community advocates have put together a vision and have begun to enact that vision, to convert that underutilized space on the Passaic River and turn it into an asset for the community," said DiVincenzo.

During the last nine years, Essex County has received more than $100 million in state Green Acres grants.

That money has been used to pay for park improvements throughout the county, including:

• The renovation of Foley Field in Bloomfield;
• Improvements to Grover Cleveland Park in Caldwell;
• The preservation of acres on Mayapple Hill in West Orange;
• Numerous improvements to the South Mountain Recreation complex, including a mini-golf course and boathouse.

DiVincenzo said he was thankful for the Green Acres funding, but said those projects couldn't have been done without consistent support and efforts from local residents.

"First, you have to make sure you have the money to do it and Green Acres made sure that was possible. Next, you need to have strong community groups," he said. 

"Government can only do so much; you need to ask the people that actually live there that act as our eyes and ears to make sure the park is being maintained. They have to hold us accountable to make sure we're doing our job."

Green Acres money also is being used in ongoing projects, including the construction of McLoone's Restaurant and boathouse along Northfield Avenue in South Mountain Reservation. The county executive said he also plans to build a zip line course at Turtle Back Zoo with 25 stations along Northfield Avenue in West Orange.