Owego’s Hickories Park Set To Reopen Next Month

Hickories Park in the town of Owego should be back in operation within the next several weeks.

A permanent entrance is being finished and other projects are nearing completion in the park adjacent to the Susquehanna River. The park entrance had been damaged by the 2011 flood.

The park was closed in early September so work could get underway.

Officials expect the park will open April 14 for pavilion rental and camping.

Town supervisor Donald Castellucci says work on the park projects has gone "remarkably well, considering the weather."

Speaking on WNBF Radio's Binghamton Now program, Castellucci said the cost of the bridge replacement project alone has been about $525,000. Engineering and other expenses must be tallied before the town submits an application for reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Castellucci said work to upgrade electric service in the park has been finished. More than half of the $514,000 cost of that work has been reimbursed by FEMA.

Development of a dog park in Hickories is moving forward. Supporters of that project say they expect the dog park could open sometime during the summer.