Keith Brown Gets $500K for Vanderbilt Museum Boathouse

By Anita Mallon

Assemblyman Keith Brown (R, Northport) presented a $500,000 check to the Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium to help stabilize the museum’s boathouse, which has slowly been falling into Northport Harbor.

The grant will help renovate and reinforce the pilings under the boathouse.

"The Vanderbilt Museum boathouse is in such disrepair that it is about to fall into Northport Harbor,” stated Brown. “I am happy to help secure this stabilization money to ensure the boathouse does not deteriorate further."

"This is the first step toward a bold plan to revitalize the structures on the grounds and help secure this important part of our heritage and culture here in Centerport," added Brown. "Many thanks to my colleagues in government, the board of trustees and the staff for putting together this grant application."

“We are most appreciative of the $500,000 grant to help restore the boathouse, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, to its original beauty,” added Vanderbilt President Jim Kelly. “This is the first step toward restoring one of the most precious and beautiful assets of the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum - our waterfront."

"It is our goal to restore Mr. Vanderbilt’s seaplane hangar into additional exhibit areas and to build a boardwalk on the waterfront," added Kelly. "This will allow our neighbors to come and enjoy the quiet beauty that is Northport Harbor.”

“On behalf of the village, we want to congratulate the Vanderbilt on this grant," stated Northport Mayor Donna Koch. "The Village looks forward to working with the Museum on other proposed improvements to the waterfront area.”