Bill Also Provides Money to Target Flooding in Passaic River Basin
(38th LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT) – Legislation sponsored by Assemblywoman Connie Wagner to allocate voter-approved open space preservation funding to help local governments in acquiring and developing lands for recreation and conservation was signed into law Wednesday.
The bill (A-4052) appropriates $84.5 million in voter-approved Green Acres and Garden State Green Acres Preservation Trust funding for open space and park development projects. The projects include several in Bergen County.
“The voters have made clear their commitment to New Jersey’s great Garden State heritage, and I couldn’t agree more, which is why I’m very pleased to see this measure signed into law” said Wagner (D-Bergen). “Knowing we live in the nation’s most densely populated state, we value open space and parks and the value they bring to our communities. It’s a shared commitment that will benefit everyone for generations to come.”
The bill provides, among other things:
· $2 million to acquire for recreation and conservation purposes properties prone to flooding in the Passaic River basin in Elmwood Park, Fair Lawn, Hasbrouck Heights, Lodi, Paramus, Saddle Brook and South Hackensack.
· $151,250 for Auxiliary Field improvements in Cliffside Park;
· $230,650 for Indian Lake Park recreation improvements in Little Ferry;
“Open space and conservation provides benefits that extend beyond boundaries,” Wagner said. “These projects and the many others funded by this bill will benefit people from throughout New Jersey.”