BLOOMFIELD, NJ — A ribbon cutting was held for the renovated Welcome Center in Essex County Brookdale Park on Friday, June 8. Work to modernize the bathroom building at the Brookdale tennis courts is nearing completion.
The upgrades are part of the ongoing initiative of County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. to update the infrastructure of county parks to ensure they meet the needs of the community.
“The open spaces and recreation facilities in Brookdale Park are well utilized and it is important that the public has access to first-class accommodations,” said the county executive. “The Welcome Center is centrally located in the park and the upgrades will ensure that it will continue to meet the needs of park visitors. We are pleased to be partnering with the Brookdale Park Conservancy, who requested the facilities be upgraded. Providing updated facilities makes our parks more user-friendly and allows the public to enjoy the open space for longer period of times and feel comfortable coming here.”
“The renovation was needed to bring this building into the 21st century.I thank the county executive for his vision and for working with the Freeholder Board, municipalities and conservancy to make the park look great” said Bloomfield Mayor Michael Venezia, who was joined by Bloomfield Councilman Nick Joanow.
The Welcome Center is centrally located in Brookdale Park and is adjacent to the Tom Fleming Athletic Complex, the playground and meadow where soccer activities are held. It was completely renovated with new ceilings, wall and floor tiles, restroom fixtures, lighting, and HVAC units.
A room inside the building was outfitted for the conservancy to host meeting and educational programs. Outside of the building, new paved walkways and an outdoor meeting area with an information kiosk were created and new landscaping was planted. Similar improvements are being made to the restroom building at the tennis courts. Construction there is ongoing and is scheduled to be completed shortly.
USA Architects from Newark was awarded a $168,500 contract to design the upgrades to the Welcome Center and the tennis courts building. Their contract also included designing improvements to the Wally Choice Community Center in Essex County Glenfield Park. ZN Construction LLC from Saddle Brook was awarded a publicly bid contract for $930,000 to perform the construction work. The Department of Public Works is monitoring the project to ensure delays are avoided. The project was funded with grants from the NJ Green Acres program and the Essex County Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund, and through the Essex County Capital Budget. Construction started in April and the Welcome Center was reopened in less than three months.
DiVincenzo’s administration has completed several improvement projects in Brookdale Park as part of a comprehensive initiative to revitalize the Essex County Park System.
The synthetic grass field and rubberized running track in the Oval were completed in May 2004 and were updated with new grass and rubberized surfaces in 2014. In 2006, the meadow underwent an extensive $1.15 million renovation that included the installation of new drainage and irrigation systems, the planting of sod on the entire meadow surface and the modernization of the baseball/softball field in the northern section of the meadow.
The development of the Brookdale Dog Park and the reconstruction of the 11-court tennis facility were completed in November 2007. In 2009, the Circuit Drive, the parking lots and the walking paths throughout the park were repaved. In 2014, a three-phase project to install 148 light poles at the park entranceways and around the walking paths and an 18-station fitness course were completed. In 2015, the playground was updated with new climbing apparatus and a rubberized safety surface.
These projects were funded with grants from the NJ Green Acres program and the Essex County Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund. DiVincenzo has established partnerships with the Montclair United Soccer and the Brookdale Park Conservancy to obtain the grant funding.
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