East Lyme has always strived to be a welcoming community. To that end, the Public Trust Foundation has been working on a project to make the Niantic Bay Beach more accessible for people with disabilities, with walkers, with canes, or parents with strollers. Kathie Cassidy, the chairperson of this project, has announced that the E.L. Parks and Rec. Commission installed, shortly before Memorial Day, an ADA compliant beach accessibility surface mat to allow wheelchair access to the Niantic Boardwalk beach.
Ms. Cassidy successfully applied for a Chelsea Groton Bank Grant award of $1,500 to cover a portion of the cost. The Public Trust Foundation donated the remainder of the purchase price of approximately $2,200.
Ms. Cassidy has reported, “It is the desire of the E.L. Public Trust Foundation to make Niantic Bay Beach and the Hole in the Wall Beach a wheelchair accessible friendly place. We also want to allow children and adults with mobility impairment to visit and enjoy these beaches”.
The accessibility surface mat will be placed near the Hole-in the-Wall beach entrance. The E.L. Parks and Recreation Department, having installed it, will also maintain it during the summer season.
In addition, the East Lyme Public Trust Foundation is pleased to announce that they have arranged for the purchase of 20, 33 gallon Trash Receptacles to be placed along the Boardwalk, and at Cini Park. Five of the receptacles have already been placed at the Hole in the Wall, and the Parks and Rec. Dept. is awaiting the delivery of 15 more. The chairperson of this project is June Hoye, who researched and organized the purchase. The total donation from the E.L. Public Trust Foundation is approximately $7,000.
Architect Mies van der Rohe once said, “God is in the Details”. The Public Trust Foundation is continuing to improve the public’s experience at the Boardwalk with grass planting, monitoring of both sand movement and the development of native and invasive plant species, and plaque installation. Coming soon, as part of our educational program, the Foundation will distribute 3,000 pamphlets focused on seashells, seaweed, and beach vegetation.