9-29-2022 8:47pm

NEW PLAN UNVEILED FOR A VIABLE LORD STIRLING PARK WITH EXPANDED ACCESS AND FACILITIES

Donnella Tilery Editor

The Stable at Lord Stirling Park will be purchasing horses to reintroduce equestrian programs this fall following the COVID-related suspension.

SOMERVILLE, NJ – The Somerset County Board of Commissioners was recently presented with a new vision for the future of Lord Stirling Park by the Park Commission’s Lord Stirling Stable Advisory Group (LSSAG) and County planning professionals. The comprehensive proposals will reopen the stable, expand facilities, and connect existing resources in support of the County’s “parks for all” goals while supporting environmental and historic sites tourism.

“What began as the rebranding of the Lord Stirling Stable has evolved into a new vision for the entire Lord Stirling Park that includes equestrian, natural, and historic experiences,” said Tom Boccino, Somerset County’s Supervising Planner, Preservation. “The plan outlines conceptually how all uses can be integrated into a single experience that highlights the valuable assets that exist in Somerset County – one park, many paths.”

Lord Stirling Park is 1,015 acres of beautiful parkland, natural waterways and open space in the northern area of Somerset County that is home to the Stable, the Environmental Education Center, and the Revolutionary War-era Boudinot Southard Farmstead. These resources have previously been operated independently of each other, and the plan proposes to connect them with expanded trails and paths, integrated programming, and newly developed community event spaces along Lord Stirling Road and at the Boudinot Southard Farmstead.

“Lord Stirling Park is a great, untapped resource for Somerset County residents and visitors, and I am extremely pleased with the work of the Park Commission, its expert advisory group, and the County Planning staff for putting together this vision for its future,” said Commissioner Paul Drake, liaison to the Park Commission. “The integration of equestrian, environmental, historic, and event spaces at Lord Stirling Park is vital to ensuring that Somerset County truly delivers the promise of ‘parks for all’.”

In Fall 2022 the Somerset County Park Commission intends to purchase a number of horses to keep at the Stable at Lord Stirling Park and begin reintroducing equestrian programming. Currently the Stable offers pony rides for children, and before the end of the year plans to provide lead-line rides for beginners and limited trail riding for more experienced patrons.

In addition to connecting the historic, recreational, and environmental resources on the Lord Stirling Park property, the County is proposing to expand its trails network to connect to the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Bernards Township’s Southard Park, and local Basking Ridge residential neighborhoods. Interconnecting these local, county, and federal resources supports Somerset County’s Walk, Bike,Hike: Connecting Vibrant Communities Plan and newly approved Preservation Plan efforts to encourage healthy, environmentally positive activities for all.

The combined plans grew out of an advisory group initiated in the spring of 2021 to consider the future of the Stable following its cessation of programming due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The eight equestrian experts and longtime Stable at Lord Stirling volunteers serving on the LSSAG were tasked with increasing community engagement and cost-effectiveness to ensure sustainable stable operations. The Somerset County Office of Planning, Policy & Economic Development recognized that the LSSAG’s recommendation for rebranding and recreating the Stable at Lord Stirling Park gave it a unique opportunity to reimagine the entire park.

With financial support from the Somerset County Park Foundation, the LSSAG was able to procure the services of two experts from Rutgers University to lead the group: Dr. Karyn Malinowski, Extension Equine Specialist and Founding Director of the Rutgers Equine Science Center; and Dr. Robin Brumfield, Extension Farm Management Specialist in the Department of Agriculture, Food and Resource Economics.

“For all of us at the Park Commission this was a mission to have a sustainable, viable future for Lord Stirling Park,” said Somerset County Park Commission President D.J. Hunsinger. “These plans not only include the functioning and self-sustaining stable feature, but going forward will grow the park into a larger, more encompassing resource that maintains the nature and the personality that residents and park patrons love.”

The Somerset County Commissioners unanimously supported the reopening of the Stable at Lord Stirling Park this fall and will work with the Park Commission on implementing future expansion and recreation of Lord Stirling Park as a “park for all”.