Hudson County will spend more than $7 million on four projects in Jersey City’s Lincoln Park, including the restoration of a historic fountain, the expansion of existing bleachers, the installation of pedestrian walkway lighting, as well as bicycle lane improvements.

On Sept. 11 the Hudson County Freeholders awarded the $6.7 million contract to restore the fountain to Nicholas and Galloway, Inc. of New York. The project is expected to begin next month and will take an about a year to complete, Hudson County spokesman Jim Kennelly said.

Hudson County Freeholder Bill O’Dea said the fountain, which is located near the park's entrance at West Side and Belmont avenues, was last overhauled in the late 1980s. Designed by sculptor Pierre J. Cheronin, the fountain was completed in 1911 but no longer functions optimally, O'Dea said.

"We love all our other parks but Lincoln Park is the flagship park," Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise said. "We have known about the condition of this fountain and also the cost, but anyone who lives in Hudson County knows that it is something we have to do."

Meanwhile, freeholders approved the $624,000 "Lincoln Park Bleacher Expansion and Press Box" project on Thursday and awarded the contract to Zenith Construction Services, Inc. of Orange. This project involves expansion of the existing bleachers and the addition of a press box at Athletic Fields 10 & 11 along Routes 1&9 Truck.

The work is expected to start in November and will be completed in three months, weather permitting, Kennelly said.

Also on Sept. 11, the freeholders approved the $158,000 "Lincoln Park Bicycle Lane Improvement" project awarded to Statewide Striping, Inc., of Parsippany. The project will involve converting the Loop Road from two way traffic to one counterclockwise lane with two bicycle lanes and a jogging lane. The work is expected to begin next month and will be completed in about 45 days, weather permitting, Kennelly said.

O'Dea added that the county has applied for Department of Transportation funding for the bicycle lane project.

Finally, on Thursday the freeholders also approved the $74,400 "Pedestrian Walkway Lighting Improvement" project awarded to Abbot Contracting Co. of Hackensack. The project will provide new pathway lighting along the existing pathway that runs from the running track to the fountain. The work is expected to begin in November and be completed in about 45 days, weather permitting, Kennelly said.



Originally called "West Side Park," the nearly 275-acre Lincoln Park was designed by landscape architects Charles Lowrie and Daniel W. Langston. It features "Lincoln the Mystic," a statue of a seated Lincoln sculpted by James Earle Fraser, as well as monuments including the Irish Famine Memorial, Civil War Solider statue, James T. Farrier Firefighter Memorial and two historic cannons, county officials said.

Lincoln Park East’s 150 acres include numerous athletic facilities, children’s areas, monuments, trails, and public wi-fi. Major projects underway at the 123-acre Lincoln Park West, which sits long the Hackensack River, will add new natural features and recreational amenities, county officials said.

The oldest and largest of the eight Hudson-maintained parks, it received its current name when it was dedicated on June 14, 1930.

A park brochure is available at on Hudson County's website.