Favorites Among Freehold Half Mile Of Horses To Be Revealed

FREEHOLD, NJ — Win, place and show. With voting completed, those will be the three categories of winners of the Half Mile of Horses Art Walk to be announced on Wednesday.

And the closing ceremony should be a festive one.

It will be at 7 p.m. on Oct. 4 in front of the Hall of Records at 1 E. Main St. - just before the start of the Downtown Freehold Fall concert with the Rob Gerrity Band at 7:30 p.m.

"The Half Mile of Horses got a lot of attention. People were excited to see this art project again this year, and it was a positive contribution to the community - a topic of conversation for many," said Dominica R. Napolitano, coordinator of the Planning Board's Neighborhood Preservation Program.

She said the horse sculptures, which are situated on pedestals along streets in the center of town, such as Main and South streets, will stay on display through the end of the month, coming off the streets just before Halloween.

The Half Mile of Horses is a public art show that focuses on the horse - an animal and industry central to the development of historic Freehold, also the Monmouth County seat and home to Freehold Raceway.

The 18 horses on display, up from 12 the first year of the art project, all have different themes, such as the "Birds of New Jersey," "Flora Botanica," or "Life Is Good," (pictured above). You can take a look at the sculptures at this borough link.

Most of the horses will be on display in town with the business that sponsored the sculpture.

"For the few horses that the sponsors are not able to display, they will be on display in the borough foyer on a rotating basis," Napolitano said.

And she said the borough anticipates a third year of the Half Mile of Horses, provided the Neighborhood Preservation grant is renewed.

At the announcement of winners, the borough will be acknowledging all the participants and appreciation of the sponsors, she added.

If needed, a rain date is scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 22, at the Food Truck Festival.

Napolitano said the Neighborhood Preservation Program grant not only brought the art project to the borough, but also funded many other projects, including a Clean-Up Day on May 6; new trash receptacles to replace broken and damaged ones; trees were planted; new decorative light poles will begin to replace outdated poles; and a façade grant for commercial/mixed-use buildings and business owners.

"The NPP grant allows us to purchase items that the borough may not be able to fund at this time," she said.