Village Board with Blueprint for Renovations. For more than a century, Eddie Collins Memorial Park in Millerton, NY has stood as a testament to both the village of Millerton, and the town of Northeast’s resilience to economic hardships and enduring communal bond. Now, after years of adapting to the surrounding communities’ changing trends and desires for the recreational park, Millerton’s village board has advanced a plan for the park’s complete overhaul. The ambitious blueprint began in 2015, when, in his inaugural year, board member Stephen Waite, a life-long village resident, noticed that village trustees had created something of a to-do list for the beloved park. While most of the initial list of desired renovations pertained to the historic brick arch that sits just off Route 22 and remains the first sign of welcome for visitors to the park, Waite and his fellow board members began to dream of even bigger changes, “Growing up here I remember the park being the focal point of my young life. Most of my summer days were spent swimming at the Denny Pool, it was a real family gathering spot for everyone around and we want to ensure the park continues to be that kind of family attraction for years to come.” In order to guarantee the park’s progress fit the needs of the community, Waite says the board took measures in order to bide their time, being cautious not to rush into major changes and staying aware of the community’s involvement at each step along the way. The village board created the Eddie Collins Memorial Park Revitalization Committee. With the board’s blessing, the committee took on the challenge of distributing a survey in the fall of 2016 and filing for a Hudson River Valley Greenway Grant to develop a conceptual master plan. The plan was completed using the data received from the survey as well as information gathered by committee members from site visits made to other recreational facilities. Recently, the board’s appeal for a Hudson River Valley Greenway Grant has been accepted. Part of the park’s overhaul includes a fully paved parking lot, the reintroduction of a community pool which had previously closed in 2016 after nearly fifty years of service, a second basketball court, a soccer field, upgrades to the current playground and new restrooms, and perhaps the most ambitious conceptual hope, a community center for access to all members of the public. The Hudson River Valley Greenway Grant might have been the first successful step for the upgraded Eddie Collins Memorial Park, but Waite maintains there is still much to be done, “We still have a ways to go including more grant access and donations,” he continues, “There are so many of us who care about the future of both Millerton and Northeast that I am confident we can get there together. For me, growing up using the park as much as I did and later as someone who uses a wheelchair, accessibility for all is key.” Most recently, a tabletop model of the proposed new park was put on display for public viewing at two separate informal presentations.