After years of planning and fund-raising, the East Hampton Village Board finally voted Friday to approve the first phase of the renovation of Herrick Park.
The idea to renovate the park began in the fall of 2018.
Alfred Angiola, of Cashin Associates, a civil engineering firm, gave a brief presentation on the plan. Phase one incorporates the southern portion of the park and includes the playing fields area. It is accessible from the Reutershan parking lot, the triangular lot that connects Newtown Lane to the north with Main Street to the east. Pedestrians can also access the fields from an entrance on Newtown Lane that will be addressed in phase two.
The updated park will feature a new layout. The tennis courts will be tucked in behind Stop and Shop, switching places with the softball field. The configuration of the full-size baseball diamond moves north, so that it sits diagonally across from the softball field. A full-size soccer/football field shares a portion of both outfields. The basketball courts will be pushed north and addressed, along with new pickleball courts, in phase two of the renovation.
“We have bleachers and dugouts for both fields,” said Nancy Lenz, a landscape designer for Cashin Associates. “The walkway has been slightly revised so that it will connect to the Reutershan parking lot and the long-term parking lot,” she said. “We’ve created little drop-off areas at either end of the Reutershan lot.”
Herrick Park will receive all new athletic lighting and new pedestrian lighting around its entire perimeter, which will also be lined with trees.
“We’ve estimated a total construction period of about 120 days,” said Mr. Angiola.
Because of fears of construction delays and materials shortages, village administrator Marcos Baladron worried that the park would not be completed in time, and the board decided instead to begin phase one in mid-October “and use as much time as we can this fall and winter and have everything ready to be installed early in spring of next year,” Mr. Baladron said.
“Final grading, irrigation and sod has to be done in the spring,” said Mr. Angiola. “We should be ready to go with a significant portion of the work by the fall.”
Much of the funding for the project was raised by the East Hampton Village Foundation, a nonprofit that uses private money to support public works projects in the village. The executive director of the foundation is Bradford Billet, whom Mayor Jerry Larsen thanked during the board meeting.
“Brad has raised almost $2 million for this venture. We thank the people who’ve donated, and we thank Brad for all his hard work. Phase one will be completed without any taxpayer money. . . . We’re really happy to announce that,” he said.
“The plan looks really good,” said Rose Brown, a trustee. “It’s similar to the original plan we had developed, which had broad community support.” She wondered about the basketball courts. “I don’t see them in this phase. What do we intend to do with them? They’re in memory of a local boy who passed, and I want to make sure we have a plan.”
The basketball courts, she said, “are probably the most used amenity in the park right now” after the playground.
“I spoke with her brother and let him know what the plans were,” said Marcos Baladron, the village administrator. That’s phase two. They’ll be in the north end of the park around Newtown Lane. The committee agreed the noises were better suited near Newtown Lane than where they are now, he said.
New pickleball courts will also be incorporated into the park during the phase two renovation. “We’re going to put together a new committee for phase two,” said Mr. Larsen, and start raising the money for that as well. He mentioned the land acquired by town’s C.P.F. fund that the village could use for the park on Muchmore Lane and the Dayton property. “The expansion of the park is going to be well used,” he said.
According to Scott Wilson, the director of land acquisition for the town, the operating agreement that the village would have to sign, which includes restrictions on the naming of the C.P.F. land, and for its use as an arboretum, has still not been signed by Mayor Larsen. However, he said, “There’s no question we’ll have an agreement.”
Ms. Brown highlighted some concern about the walkways. Instead of having a separate walkway for pedestrians, some areas of the walkway bump out to eight feet and are shared with the “Free-Ride” electric vehicles, which will be able to ride between the parking lot off Lumber Lane and the Reutershan lot. “We don’t see it as a problem,” said Mr. Baladron, as those vehicles are not that wide.
“I’m excited to have this phase one ready and before us, and I hope we move on it as soon as possible,” said Ms. Brown. “The fields are in terrible condition . . . the courts . . . we’re on borrowed time with them. The sooner we can get it done the sooner the children and youth of our community can enjoy it.”
Mr. Larsen explained that the village would be pushing its luck to try and get the work completed faster. “I would hate to start something that we couldn’t complete by the summer, and then no one could enjoy the park,” he said.
