Atlantic Highlands Park Gets $85,000 For Upgrades

MIDDLETOWN, NJ – Monmouth County recently awarded a total $3.47 million in grants to parks in 23 towns through the 2020 round of the Municipal Open Space Grant (MOSG) program. Of the funds available, Atlantic Highlands' Many Mind Park was awarded $85,000 for improvements.

The borough of Sea Bright was also given $80,000 to make Phase II improvements to Shrewsbury Riverfront Park.

Many Mind Park is part of Many Mind Creek, which drains into Sandy Hook Bay at the sandy beach between Avenue A and First Avenue. The creek starts in Middletown. It is part of the Bayshore Watershed Area, which includes approximately 15 creeks between Highlands and South Amboy.

The MOSG program is sponsored by the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders and is the primary method in which the county assists local recreation departments. This program provides vital funding to municipalities in order to meet needs relating to open space acquisition, recreation and historic conservation.

This year, a total of 31 applications were received requesting a total of $5,469,000. Another $2 million in grant funds, combined with $1.47 million of redistributed grant funds, allowed the county to award a total of $3.47 million in grant funding.

"The MOSG program is an example of how the County works cooperatively and successfully to ensure local park needs are met, especially during this uniquely challenging time when residents need access to parks more than ever to support their mental and physical health," said Freeholder Director Thomas A. Arnone.

"The County is proud to offer this successful grant program to all Monmouth County municipalities. Each year, we receive more grant requests than we have funding available and we have to make tough award decisions," said Freeholder Lillian G. Burry, liaison to the Monmouth County Park System. "This year, we had a record number of applications as towns work hard to meet the increased park demands in their community."