Huntington Station Basketball Park To Get 'Complete Overhaul'

HUNTINGTON STATION, NY — The Huntington Town Board greenlit a Huntington Station basketball park at its March 15 meeting in addition to approving infrastructure funding, the town announced.

The board approved a "complete overhaul" of Alfred J. Walker Memorial Park, which is named for the late famed artist and cartoonist, veteran and resident on West 11th Street in Huntington Station.

The project cost is estimated to be $1,200,000 with approximately half anticipated to be covered by EOSPA Park Improvement funding. The plan, which was developed with input from the community and Walker family, includes a new playground; a renovated basketball court; adult exercise equipment; a gazebo/shade structure with picnic tables and benches and a marker dedicated to Walker’s volunteer stewardship of the park; an "Alfred J. Walker Art Walk” featuring a permanent display of Walker’s cartoons and artwork, originally created in the home next to the park; the preservation of open space at the south and east ends of the park with grass fields; and a new parking lot with 10 standard parking spaces and 2 accessible spaces.

The town will attempt to preserve a grove of English yew trees on the southeast corner of the property as a buffer for the current residents at the historic home, planted by Alfred J. Walker’s father, Alfred H. Walker, a horticulturist who ran a flower business from his greenhouse onsite.

“Our conversations with the Huntington Station community over the past year have brought to light the need for a decades-long overdue improvement of the athletic and play facilities at Alfred J. Walker Memorial Park,” stated Supervisor Ed Smyth. "Over the past few years, we have begun to see the revitalization of Huntington Station come to fruition north of the train tracks, while tangible progress on the James D. Conte Community Center and the opening of the Manor Field Spray Park will be realized this year, in addition to economic development now being possible south of the tracks thanks to our dedication of significant sewer funding with the County, but I am especially proud and delighted to have the support of all of my Town Board colleagues on this long-neglected significant open space park improvement project on West 11th Street.”

The Town Board approved $6.2 million for road repaving and traffic safety improvements, including:

• $4.5 million for road repaving.
• $1 million in road drainage improvements.
• $300,000 for improvements to curbs, sidewalks, and pedestrian ramps.
• $400,000 to install a traffic signal(s) and traffic calming devices at Depot Road at East 10th Street, Woodbury Road at High Street, East Rogues Path at Whitson Road, and Vernon Valley Road at Bellecrest Avenue.

The Town Board approved critical infrastructure improvements to:

• Reconstruct the West Neck Beach Causeway after significant erosion from tidal storm flooding, add a rain garden to filter stormwater runoff, and reestablish and stabilize the shoreline embankments.
• Televise and rehabilitate the sanitary sewer lines and manholes, upgrade, replace and repair facilities at the Huntington Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) and Town Recycling Center.
• Upgrade and improve technology infrastructure with servers, network switches, and storage to improve the Town's network and security.
• Build up the broken and eroded cement groins at Hobart Beach that, during their useful lifespan, effectively reduced and prevented erosion by trapping sand during storms and tidal action.