STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – Over two scorching days with the help of nearly than 100 volunteers, the 5K hiking trail at Clove Lakes Park was nearly 100% restored.
The collaboration — in addition to the physical labor and behind-the-scenes partnerships to get the trail restored – took a village.
Sunnyside resident Jay Duskin, who brought the trail’s deteriorating condition to the Advance/SILive.com’s attention and worked on its restoration, said it was a “huge, huge, success.”
Duskin and fellow runner Bill Allert worked with the city Parks Department, Borough President Vito Fossella, and Assemblyman Michael Cusick on how and when the trail would be restored.
Nearly 100 volunteers worked over the course of two days to restore the 5K hiking trail in Clove Lakes Park that suffered severe damage in 2021 during Hurricane Ida. (Photo courtesy of Jay Duskin)
Staten Island high school track teams were among the volunteers, as well as Parks Commissioner Linda Ricciardone. Beverage Island supplied water and Gatorade to the volunteers who worked in temperatures 90 degrees and higher.
“It’s now 100% better than it was; the whole course is now safely traversable,” Duskin said. “This was a huge, huge success and now that we’ve got a database of volunteers, we can do regular maintenance to prevent it from getting that bad again.”
“The trail suffered substantial damage during Hurricane Ida last year. Now this treasured running path is in much better shape, thanks to efforts led by Bill Allert from SITRAC [Staten Island Track and Running Community] in partnership with elected officials,” said Parks Department spokeswoman Megan Moriarty, who also thanked the volunteers for their hard work.
Fossella said, “We thank the Parks Department and community members who helped to restore the 5K paths at Clove Lakes Park. Their efforts have resulted in improved trails for the surrounding neighborhood and those who use them daily. We are pleased to see the paths repaired and ready, and hope this can become a permanent solution. As mentioned previously, we will continue to monitor the conditions of the trail and stand ready to make changes when necessary. Thank you to all who came out and brought these trails back to life.”
Nearly 100 volunteers worked over the course of two days to restore the 5K hiking trail in Clove Lakes Park that suffered severe damage in 2021 during Hurricane Ida. (Photo courtesy of Jay Duskin)
Fossella and Cusick’s office have a list of volunteers to call on when more gravel becomes available to repair the small remaining sections of the trail.
You can sign up to volunteer here.
“Thanks to the collaboration between the Staten Island running community, my office, the Borough President’s office, and the Parks Department, the Clove Lakes 5K trail is now once again in safe usable condition,” Cusick said. “The restoration of this trail is a prime example of what we can accomplish when active citizens, and local representatives work together to serve the community.”
Construction of the $1.9 million state-of-the-art trail began in 2018 and was completed in 2020. According to the city Parks Department, the $1,922,000 was funded by former Mayor Bill de Blasio and former Borough President James Oddo.
The trail’s reconstruction consisted of creating new trail and sub-base materials, mile markers and a new start/finish line.
The construction project also included new edging and improved drainage systems to prevent rapid erosion.
Nearly 100 volunteers worked over the course of two days to restore the 5K hiking trail in Clove Lakes Park that suffered severe damage in 2021 during Hurricane Ida. (Photo courtesy of Jay Duskin)
TROPICAL STORM IDA CAUSED SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE IN 2021
In September 2021, tropical storm Ida caused severe flooding on Staten Island, dumping nearly nine inches of rain in some parts of the borough.
Because the 5K trail is not asphalt – instead it’s comprised of layers of soil, large rocks, smaller rocks over a subbase of geotechnical fabric – the significant rainfall and severe flooding destroyed portions of the trail and damaged other sections.
“It was a natural disaster, and I understand that, but you got to come in and fix it right away,” Duskin said.
The 5K hiking trail at Clove Lakes Park was severely damaged in 2021 after Hurricane Ida and several days of torrential rain swept through Staten Island. The damaged areas could be dangerous to runners, hikers, and people who walk the trail, said Staten Islander Jay Duskin, who runs the trail every day. (Staten Island Advance/Kristin F. Dalton)
During the early days of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Duskin, like so many others, found solace in the park – he called it a haven — and parts of the 5K trail an unpopulated getaway within the expansive park.
“This park was the lifeline of many in the height of the pandemic with borough residents populating these trails to get much needed fresh air and nature without restriction and masks. Now these trails in a number of places are incapable of being safely traversed,” Duskin said.
School track teams and running clubs on Staten Island run the 5K trail, as well as community members who walk along the trail — some who are senior citizens and others with baby strollers.
The 5K hiking trail at Clove Lakes Park was severely damaged in 2021 after Hurricane Ida and several days of torrential rain swept through Staten Island. The damaged areas could be dangerous to runners, hikers, and people who walk the trail, said Staten Islander Jay Duskin, who runs the trail every day. (Staten Island Advance/Kristin F. Dalton)
NO CAPITAL FUNDING FOR FULL RESTORATION FROM PARKS
A city Parks Department spokeswoman acknowledged that the 5K running trail at Clove Lakes Park suffered “substantial damage” from Hurricane Ida last September.
“We know this is a treasured element of the park and hope to restore it to its original state in the near future,” the spokeswoman said.
However, the city Parks Department doesn’t have the capital funding needed to address the damaged areas of the trail, said the spokeswoman.
“[We] ask that visitors exercise caution and care,” the spokeswoman said.
However, the Parks Department will be resurfacing the walking path at Clove Lakes Park, the Department said.
Starting with the Royal Oak area, which runs along Royal Oak Road off of Victory Boulevard, the Parks Department will resurface the asphalt pathway beginning in late 2022 and will be completed in Spring 2023.
Construction on the second phase is expected to begin in Fall 2023.
The $8.75 million in improvements were funded by former Mid-Island Councilman Steven Matteo and the mayor’s office.
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