Tom Cohn grew up in White Plains. When he and his friends would drive up to Ward Pound Ridge Reservation for a hike, the favored destination was the Cross River Mountain Fire Tower. “It felt like we were going to Canada,” he told an audience at the WPA Gallery in the Park. “I was upset when it was taken down.” Tom, who lives in Bedford now, has been working and advocating for the last 9 years to try to get the fire tower put back up. His tireless efforts have paid off in the form of state and county funding that will – at long last – make the dream a reality.
On Tuesday, October 29 at the WPA Gallery in the park, New York State Senator Peter Harckham announced a $100,000 state grant awarded for the purposes of reconstructing the historic Fire Tower at the park. He was joined by Westchester County Executive George Latimer and Westchester Legislator Kitley Covill, whose district includes Ward Pound Ridge Reservation. They announced a matching $100,000 grant from Westchester County earmarked for engineering and design for the project in conjunction with the state funding.
Peter told a story about his first fire tower climb up in the Catskills. “When I climbed down, the ranger gave me a badge that said I was the youngest to climb that tower.” Years later he realized that might not have been entirely the case, but he treasures the memory. He wants to help re-create that magical feeling for a new generation of hikers and explorers. “The project will bring countless new visitors to Ward Pound Ridge Reservation and will serve as another economic benefit for the neighboring towns and for Westchester County. I definitely plan to be among the first visitors to enjoy the incredible panoramic views of the region from the new tower.”
Supervisors from the surrounding towns of Lewisboro, Bedford, and Pound Ridge were in attendance as well and have been ardent supporters of the effort to bring the Fire Tower back. Peter Parsons, Lewisboro Town Supervisor and Chris Burdick, Bedford Town Supervisor wrote letters of support over five years ago backing the project. Pound Ridge Supervisor Kevin Hansen is also a supporter of the project and the Pound Ridge Town Board has written letters in support. Other supporters present included Lewisboro Town Historian Maureen Koehl along with Westchester Historical Society board member and Leatherman’s Loop founder Tony Godino. Both are enthusiastic supporters of the project. Tony said he was “happy for the park to have this for the kids and the people. And I congratulate Tom who has been so persistent in pursuing this dream, even when faced with obstacle after obstacle.” Other supporters include the Westchester Land Trust, Riverkeeper, the Lewisboro Land Trust, and the Bedford Historical Society.
Parks Commissioner Kathleen O’Connor, who has been part of talks to bring back the fire tower for a long time, also spoke about the tower. “Anything that brings more people into the parks is welcome.” She acknowledged Jeff Main, the Ward Pound Ridge Reservation superintendent, as a bridge to the past. Jeff spoke about how he gave tours of the tower when he first joined the parks department as a new hire in the 1970s. He said after it was officially decommissioned in 1971, it remained open when a ranger was posted there. Gradually the tower deteriorated and was taken down in 1982. “People who experienced it have not forgotten it, but the newer folks in the area have no idea what they missed.” He is looking forward to the restoration and the reintroduction of the experience. Jeff noted there was a small stone caretaker’s cabin at the base of the tower which was demolished when the tower was removed. It is an open question whether the cabin will be incorporated into the restoration effort.
The Cross River Mountain Fire Tower project will join a growing number of New York State fire towers that have been restored and are public destinations. Some of these restored towers include the Upper Esopus Fire Tower in Mt Tremper, NY and the Ninham Mountain Fire Tower in Carmel, NY. The fire tower will be restored as faithfully as possible while adhering to the updated building codes. Having other New York State fire tower restorations as templates will ease the process.
Cross River Mountain, at 860 feet elevation, is the highest point in Ward Pound Ridge Reservation. It is accessible via the blue trail from Kimberly Bridge or via a white connector trail from the Pell Hill campsites. The closest you can park a car to the tower site is three-quarters of a mile hike away, so visitors will have to work a bit to get to the tower. The tower base elevation plus the 80’ tower puts the total elevation at around 940’ at the top, which is still a bit shy of the highest point in Westchester. That title belongs to Bailey Mountain in Mountain Lakes Park, standing at 982’ according to the USGS marker. Bailey Mountain will be one of the many that will be visible from the vista provided by the new fire tower. Other visible points of interest will be New York City, the Catskills, the Hudson Highlands, Long Island Sound, the Whitestone, Throgs Neck, and George Washington bridges, and many smaller features and peaks.
One question asked of the County Executive Latimer and Senator Harckham was when the project will get started and when do they expect the project to finish. Since the grants are in the 2020 budgets, the initial design and engineering work would take place starting in January 2020 and would probably take about a year to complete. After then a second round of financing would be approved for the actual building of the foundation and tower which could take 6-12 months. Another question about possibly putting emergency services repeaters on the tower was going to be addressed in the design stage in accordance to restrictions on park use for that type of activity.
For those questioning the need for a fire tower, which seems like a throwback to the past, Tom Cohn says “All anyone needs to do to understand this fire tower idea is to climb the tower, stand 1000 feet above sea level, and look to the horizon – it’s beautiful.”
Article written by Robert J. Cummings ©2019
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