Village Board Refines Flint Park Plans & Considers How To Pay the Bills

by Judy Silberstein

(August 6, 2003) Flint Park is relatively quiet at the moment - camp’s over and school sports haven’t started - but Larchmont’s Village Board is taking the summer to continue refining prospective plans for the back portion of the park. Earlier, board members met with their consultant Monroe Eberlin to dig into the details, and on Tuesday, August 4, they convened by themselves for an in-depth review of the latest drawings. Next, they will be sharing the plans one more time with their task force of representatives from athletic and parks groups, before seeking comments from additional committees and the general public.

They also need to tackle the question of paying for the improvements. A price tag has not yet been applied to the plans – that comes next.

Revised version of proposed plans for Flint Park as of August 2003
Detail from drawings by Eberlin & Eberlin with color added by Larchmont Gazette

“Overall, this is like a 7," commented Mayor Ken Bialo rating the plan on a scale from 1 to 10. “The first plan was like a 4.”

The Board had asked Eberlin for a number of changes to the original plan, including: flattening the berm separating fields and waterfront; reconfiguring the Department of Public Works away from the waterfront; reconfiguring the fields more efficiently; eliminating parking from one side of the street for increased safety; and expanding the environmental area and connecting it to a similar trail behind the Hommocks. (See: draft of a preliminary proposal.)

The Board is working with very tight constraints – both geographic and financial.

Read about the The Recreation Commission's Plans for Flint Park in 1922.

The space is relatively small to fit all the activities the community desires, and it’s hemmed in by environmentally sensitive trees, wetlands, and residential backyards. There’s been a population explosion – not just more kids, but more kids playing more sports. At the same time, there is renewed interest in developing the waterfront behind the fields for nature and small boat activities. Balancing competing demands for ball fields and waterfront access can be tricky, given the limited space and the need for safety and security. (See: Balancing Athletics and Environment)

It’s been clear for some time that the costs of the renovations will far exceed the original budget of approximately $250,000 with half of that coming from an Environmental Protection Fund grant. Last January, Eberlin “guestimated” the Village would need more than double that to complete the project. Additional support may come from the Town of Mamaroneck and Mamaroneck School District, since children from all over the community make use of Flint Park facilities. There may also be additional grants from Westchester County, New York State or federal agencies

The Village Board will be looking into these financial possibilities, but meanwhile it will be focusing on optimizing the park layout.

On Tuesday, the Board scrutinized plans for fencing around the planned new regulation sized baseball field and agreed that the proposed sixteen-foot high fences should be longer to keep foul balls from raining into the nature area. Minor shifts in the new soccer field might be needed to avoid damage to a number of trees. But, on the whole, the Board was satisfied that the plans were ready to share again with their advisory task force in the near future, and with the general public, perhaps in the fall.

The aerial photo from TerraServer provides a view of the current conditions in the park. Click here for a closer view.

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