EXTREME MAKEOVER: FOUNTAIN EDITION
Public-private partnership makes it happen
TROY, N.Y. » The Frear Park fountain is sporting a fresh, new look this season upon the completion of a public-private renovation project.
The fountain, located at the main entrance to Frear Park, is once again flowing with water for park-goers to admire.
The recently finished project was a partnership between local resident and entrepreneur Jamie Magur, the city of Troy and several other area companies and individuals who contributed to the project including Kevin Murray of Murray West Masonry, Rick Murray of Murray’s Masonry, Chris Mele of Magur Management, Anthony Melucci, Anthony Rivera, Jack Mahoney, Doug Wilke, Engelke Farms, Warren W. Fane, Inc. and CK Contracting.
The cost of materials was covered by approximately $1,400 from the city of Troy along with additional funding from Magur and his wife Amy.
“Frear Park is one of our crown jewels,” Magur said on why he wanted to pursue this initiative, which started last fall. “It is a landmark and it needs to look like a landmark again,” he said at the time.
Now, the fountain is once again fully functioning and looking the way neighbors like Magur think it should.
Since moving nearby the Troy native saw how much
the fountain had decayed over the years, he said, and wanted to restore it to the beauty he recalls from childhood memories.
Now that the fountain is looking even better than he remembered it as a kid, Magur said he is taking responsibility for its maintenance moving forward.
Magur hopes that members of the community will see how much work went into the project and treat the area with respect to keep the landmark looking its best.
“It’s a beautiful entryway to a beautiful park,” said Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin while checking out the fountain on Monday. “It’s nice to see it up and running.”
McLaughlin was also glad to see the civic involvement from participants like Magur. “Jamie took on the project and got it done, saw it through,” he said. “It’s great for the city and the county.”
Along with the fountain’s beauty, Troy Mayor Patrick Madden is impressed at how individuals in the community came together and took the initiative on this project. “They saw this as an opportunity to beautify their neighborhood, to make it look better, and they stepped forward and put in I don’t know how many hours of volunteer labor, and made it possible,” he said. “It’s a story of community.”
Now that the fountain project is complete, Magur plans to freshen up the entire entrance to Frear Park by pressure washing and repainting the stone pillars on Oakwood Avenue.