Back in May, the Friends of the Saratoga Spa State Park was in the hunt for a $75,000 grant to help restore the long-out-of-use Coesa Spring in the Saratoga Spa State Park. Now, its wish has come true.
Today, the organization announced that it has been awarded a $75,000 matching grant from the Environmental Protection Fund’s Park and Trail Partnership Grants program to get Coesa back in working order. The spring, which has been out of use for nearly four decades, requires rehabilitation to its aging spring house, a period-correct water fountain, ground stabilization and other enhancements before visitors can safely visit it.
While the grant will certainly help, it’s only one step forward: The organization still has to raise an additional $67,000 in matching funds, for a total of $142,000, to get the project started.
The grant is one of 30, totaling $900,000, that has been awarded to an organization dedicated to the stewardship and promotion of New York’s state parks and historic sites, trails and public lands. The grants, which are administered by Parks & Trail New York—a statewide nonprofit that works in partnership with the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation—will be matched with private and local funding.
“With more and more people discovering the outdoors, and visitation to our parks, trails and public lands soaring, the need for strong public/public partnerships has never been greater,” said Robin Dropkin, executive director of Parks & Trails New York. “The Park and Trail Partnership Grants help bolster the role of Friends groups in these vital partnerships.”
