OGDENSBURG -- A $40,000 St. Lawrence River Valley Redevelopment Agency grant will help Ogdensburg’s fort association establish a waterfront park and trail system at Lighthouse Point.

Fort La Presentation will use the grant as leverage funding for design and construction of a trail network, a visitor and educational meeting space, interpretive signage, site restoration work, landscaping, development of porous surface parking area, and strong links to the City of Ogdensburg’s Maple City Trail system.

If successful, the park will be used for events, historic reenactments, fieldtrips, and recreation. It will also result in a waterfront trail network that offers scenic views of the St. Lawrence and Oswegatchie Rivers for Ogdensburg’s residents and visitors.

Lining the trail network will be a series of interpretive signs that illustrate the site’s history, including its Native American roots, both Fort La Presentation and Oswegatchie (both played key roles in the French & Indian War, American Resolution, and War of 1812), as well as its historic industrial uses.

The trail would also link with the City of Ogdensburg’s popular Maple City Trail, establishing a recreational experience and downtown access to the waterfront. The city included the project in its Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) and Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) as a strategic action to improve the local and regional economy.

The $40,000 comes from the River Agency’s community development fund. The money will be used as leverage for the $470,000 project. The lion’s share of that project will be paid for with a $350,000 grant from the state’s park and recreation office.