By Thane Grauel

WESTPORT — Riverside Park will be neglected no more.

The Representative Town Meeting held an extensive debate about funding an overhaul of the 6.5-acre property Tuesday night. After almost two hours of discussion, the body voted 32-2, with two people absent, to approve $436,000 for improvements.

The Board of Finance had approved the expenditure Aug. 4.

The plan calls for improved access to river vistas, replacing invasive plant species with native species, more trails, complete sidewalks along Riverside Avenue and 10 spots for parking. 

About $70,000 more in funding for sidewalks and an improved parking area will come through a public works request. 

Located at 427 Riverside Ave., just north of the Joseph J. Clinton VFW Post, the park stretches down from the road to the Saugatuck River. 

It’s one of three parks on the west bank of the Saugatuck. The others are Pasacreta Park, 225 Riverside Ave., across from Sylvan Road South and the Sunoco station, and Eloise A. Ray Park, across from Lincoln Street.

Riverside Park is used by people in the neighborhood, but is not as well known to others. 

“It has been neglected, I would say, for close to 30 years,” said RTM member Louis Mall, District 2. 

“These are like little gemstones around the river,” he said of the small parks. “We aren’t growing more riverfront property.”

Seth Braunstein, District 6, called the plan excellent, but said other parks need work as well, and it should be prioritized.

“I would feel more comfortable allocating those funds once we have a plan that is more appropriate in terms of prioritizing all the different competing interests,” he said. 

“I love what I see,” said Andrew Colabella, District 4. “I think it’s a great improvement. This is something I’ve been asking for a very long time.”

“We need to plan this very deliberately and figure out where we want to spend our money,” said Wendy Batteau, District 8.

She said likes the plan for Riverside, but not consideration of a kayak launch there.

“The highest best use of open space is open space,” she said.

Former Public Works Director Steve Edwards, a consultant on the park plan, said it’s time to stop studying and start acting.

“Unfortunately, in my years in Westport, a lot of things that were put on the table were taken off and put on hold to come back to later on,” he said. “And you know something, a lot of them are still on the friggin’ table.”

“We have an opportunity to take this and run with it,” he said.