Jamaica Bay land designated for park usage

A 1.2-acrea swatch of land in Jamaica Bay is set to become a waterfront park, after initial plans to transform it into a space for private developments was scrapped. Trust for Public Land, a non-profit conservation group, purchased the land from Hudson Companies, which had planned to build 20 homes on the site. The group purchased the land for $1.925 million, with additional funds provided by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, before immediately donating it to the city for public use. Alan Ball, one of the owners of Hudson Companies, said that his group was happy with the outcome of the deal. “We had no debt on the property, and we could have held on to it pretty easily, so we said we might as well cut bait and move on,” Ball said. “Moving this project to the Trust for Public Land was a very good thing to do.”