New York State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr. (I, D, WF-Sag Harbor) today announced New York State will be awarding $150,000 for improved hiking access and trails in the undeveloped 1,364-acre Napeague State Park between the Atlantic Ocean and Napeague Bay in the Town of East Hampton. A total of $1.3 million for 17 projects throughout the State were selected funded. These trails projects are part of the State’s commitment to improving parks and expanding access to outdoor recreation through the NY Parks 2020 Plan.

The NY Parks 2020 Plan is a multi-year commitment to leverage $900 million in private and public funding for State Parks from 2011 to 2020. The 2016-17 State Budget allocates $90 million toward this initiative.

In addition to NY Parks 2020, New York State has launched the Connect Kids to Parks program to enhance educational and recreational opportunities for schoolchildren and help promote parks and historic places in every corner of the state. As part of that effort, New York will partner with the National Park Service to extend free State Park day-use entry to all fourth-grade students and their families in 2016, as well as create a grant program to help transport schoolchildren to outdoor recreation and environmental education programs at state parks and historic sites across New York.