The Borough was notified of an additional $200,000 grant from the Passaic County Board of Commissioners Open Space Fund for the planned Diane Grimes Park Improvement Project.

The Borough had already received a $225,000 Passaic County Open Space Grant, a $95,000 US Congress Congressionally Directed Funding FY22 Grant, and a $75,000 New Jersey Department of Community Affairs Local Recreational Improvement Grant for this project. This $595,000 in grant funds will allow for a complete overhaul of the Grimes playground area in this first phase of a two-phase project which is planned. Phase two would involve the upper field and lighting improvements.

The playground plan is being completed and it will model Verona Park in Verona, where playground amenities are built into the topography of the park. It will also feature an Americans With Disabilities Act-accessible play structure.

The Grimes Park renovation is just one of numerous improvement projects the Recreation Department detailed to the Borough Council during a presentation at its Oct. 19 meeting. The vision plan includes:

• Memorial Field: replacement of playground surface behind Beatrice Gilmore School, lighting upgrades to LED lights, and lighting system upgrade to enable phone-controlled operation and automatic schedules
• School 1: replacement of older, dated playground equipment on the far corner of the property
• Cavalieri Park on Bergen Boulevard: two full-sized tennis courts that will double as pickle-ball courts, new pathway to get from the street to the playground and courts, a new parking lot to mitigate street parking, fence improvements, and resurfacing of the playground area.

The properties on both sides of the park were obtained by the Borough as part of flood buyouts and will enable the park expansion.