BY ANDY GARDNER
North Country This Week

MASSENA -- A $20,000 St. Lawrence River Valley Redevelopment Agency grant will go toward groundskeeping and a safety fence at the dog training grounds on state Route 131.

Councilman Tom Miller, who announced that at Wednesday's Town Council meeting, said the total price tag will be over $20,000. To pay for the balance not covered by the grant, he suggested using the remainder of $15,000 the board voted to spend in a 2017 resolution, and they haven't yet spent the whole balance. They spent $5,400 from that $15,000 toward an excavator, so there is a little under $10,000 still available.

"To get the final contract of that company coming in, doing all the work ... cost $20,000-$25,000," he said.

Volunteers have done most of the work at the site, Miller said.

James Murphy, Massena Business Development Corporation executive director, wrote the grant, along with Tony Zappia.

Zappia is a local outdoor sports enthusiast who has spearheaded creating the training ground. He has previously said they believe the site, once finished, will help the local economy. Hunting dog trials are a big draw in other areas of the country and believes if they were to be held in Massena, it could help the local economy, he told the Town Council two years ago. He also told the board that trainers often take their dogs to training grounds in the south during the winter and seek facilities in the north during the summer months.