By David Cruz

State and city officials unveiled plans to upgrade Roberto Clemente State Park from another Hurricane Sandy-like storm.

State Parks Commissioner Rose Harvey, walking alongside Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and park engineers, toured the 26-acre park today to point out upgrades expected for the borough’s only state park. The park was ravaged during Hurricane Sandy, which destroyed most of the park with its now infamous surge that brought a tidal wave of water from the Harlem River to the child-friendly park.

In many ways the park served as a martyr of sorts, protecting the neighboring River Towers and Metro-North station from Sandy’s punishing surge.

“The water literally went into all our vehicles so we lost almost all our fleet of vehicles. All these picnic tables were found by the fence. The picnic tables would have been in the river,” said park director Frances Rodriguez, adding the building’s facility housing computer equipment was also destroyed. “The park took a massive, massive hit.”

Electrical lines burrowed underneath park grounds were also compromised, forcing Rodriguez to close the park on sundown since the park lights were inoperable.

Much of the storm-proof work will take place along the perimeter of the park’s esplanade, a 2100-foot wide seawall that sustained most of the damage. The bulkheads that keep the seawall in place were affected, as divers determined the metallic structure was punctured like “Swiss cheese,” as Commissioner Harvey pointed out.

Water will seep into the water, though upgrades to the electrical infrastructure will prevent another outage from happening. In all, $46 million in federal funds allocated to Governor Cuomo’s New York Rising fund will help cover the cost of upgrades.

“This project will rebuild an essential coastal protection measure for the Morris Heights neighborhood, helping to ensure that the area’s residents, businesses, and parks are safeguarded from the impact of future flooding,” said Governor Cuomo in a statement.” Our administration is pleased to be working with our federal and local partners to make this project a reality as we continue to build back stronger, smarter and better than ever before.”

BP Diaz has pledged $500,000 for the project, which is expected to begin sometime in the winter.

Public meetings on June 19 at 1:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. are slated for anyone interested in providing input or learning more about the project.