Where Have All The Parks Gone?
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Do you remember what parks were like when you were a kid? Which was your park? Who remembers every snowstorm sledding down the big hill in Votee and landing in an open field? Playing in Andreas Park and sliding down the big metal slide, and going on a nature walk around the Hackensack River? Driving and watching the Artist painting near the giant rock in Frances E. Hall Veteran’s Park? For most of us, they were magical places; joyful places; full of fun and freedom. They might have had swings, a jungle gym, maybe a sprinkler to run through on a hot Summer day, a grassy field to throw a ball and have a family picnic on. They had park benches for our parents and grandparents, picnic tables, and some even had grills. Whatever our parks had, they were a big part of life for most of us. Sadly, that is not the case for many kids in Teaneck these days. Unless you live near Votee Park, your neighborhood park probably has rusting play equipment, cracked tennis courts, spotty grass, overgrown walking paths, with the banks of ponds and streams eroding into large mud puddles, and structures in disrepair.
Votee Park, on the other hand, is indeed an up-to-date, jam-packed place, full of amenities. A Sportsplex, a new playing field, a splash pad, an accessible playground, tennis courts in good shape, a walking track, a bandshell, and a large Field House with meeting rooms, bathrooms and two kitchens. There are more amenities than almost anybody wants in a park. (Still there are no park benches and picnic tables, or updated grills. Perhaps because they are not bells-and-whistles items?)
How did we get to this point? Who is responsible? What can be done? How has Teaneck arrived at a state where taxes paid by the many residents of Teaneck that are funding the amenities for the few.
Remarkably, the answer is simple. The Town Council and the Planning Board have failed to complete and submit an up to date ROSI, and approve the OSRP that the township spent time, money and resources on, that would allow us to receive Green Acre grants for our parks.
More importantly, they have never answered the critical question, why only Votee Park? Specifically, the Northern side of Votee Park (the side closest to W. Englewood Avenue). Why are 25 town parks, including our largest, Argonne at 54 acres, neglected? Why is a once beautiful system of parks that allowed most town residents to be a ten-minute walk to a place of relaxation, open space, fresh air, and fun in the neighborhood, been allowed to fall to ruin?
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We know the bounty in Votee Park. Let’s look at a few of the others:
- Argonne Park is essentially wilderness now. The tennis courts are in poor shape, and the walking paths have disappeared.
- Andreas Park is losing its lovely Indian Pond to erosion between it and the Hackensack River, walking paths are overgrown with invasive species. The once charming Carriage House is draped in a blue tarp, too dangerous to use, and too expensive to remove.
- Eleanor Kieliczek Park, at the Belle Avenue entrance to Teaneck, once housed the lovely Girl Scout Little House. That once enchanting cottage is now crumbling, and slated to be torn down. It is a sad “welcome” to Teaneck.
- Clarence Brett Park, occupying beautiful riverside land with gorgeous meadows, is relegated to a commuter parking lot.
What can be done? The answer is a lot, but not until we compel the members of the Town Council and the Planning Board to do their jobs or replace them with people who will.
Teaneck Voices proposes necessary steps:
- The Teaneck Planning Board immediately must approve the new 2019 Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP).
- The Town Council immediately must work with the Green Acres to align its Recreation and Open Space Inventory (ROSI) with the Green Acres’ records.
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Parks and Recreation Guide
Greenbelt- Portion of NJ Route 4 that passes through Teaneck.
Hackensack River Greenway- A 3.5-mile trail paralleling the Hackensack River, anchored by Terhune Park in the South, and Brett Park at its Northern end
Friends of the Hackensack River Greenway- A volunteer-staffed 501c3 organization that helps maintain and promote passive recreation along the Hackensack River Greenway
MOST (Municipal Open Space Trust)- A fund supported by voter referendum to voluntarily add a small tax to property tax bills to acquire open space and add recreational facilities.
NJDEP (New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection)- The NJ Department of Environmental Protection. It’s mandate to protect environmental quality, public health and sustainable communities embraces the following priorities: Reduce and Respond to Climate Change, Protect New Jersey’s Water, Revitalize our communities and protect public health, Manage and Promote Thriving Natural and Historic Resources, Strengthen DEP.
NJDEPGA (New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Green Acres Program) - The Green Acres Program provides low interest loans and grants to assist local governments in the acquisition and development of open space for recreation and conservation purposes. Preserved open space protects our water supply, protects sensitive habitats for our endangered or threatened species, promotes smart growth and provides a place for public recreation and connection with community and nature.
HOW DO WE GET GREEN ACRES MONEY? There are various loans and grants, but the most important is the PLANNING INCENTIVE ACQUISITIONS (PI funds). The critical requirement for PI funds which provide a 50% matching grant is a completed Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP) and a MOST tax.
OSRP (Open Space and Recreation Plan)- To be eligible for Green Acres funding Planning Incentive, a municipality must prepare an Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP) every ten years. The OSRP is approved by the Planning Board as the main guide and decision-maker of land use in the township. The primary purpose of an OSRP is to establish guiding principles for key decisions in facilitating thoughtful and productive purchasing, conservation and management of areas deemed to be of significant environmental and/or recreational value. Teaneck last approved an OSRP in 2007, therefore, Teaneck’s OSRP expired in 2017. Since a new OSRP has not been approved by the Planning Board, Teaneck is ineligible for Green Acres PI Funds.
PPRAB (Parks, Playgrounds, Recreation Advisory Board)- A volunteer Advisory Board subject to the new requirements determined by the Township Council in 2020. As such, it is not subject to Opening Public Meetings Act (OPMA) or Open Public Records Act (OPRA) requirements. It will report to the Council, not to the public.
ROSI (Recreation and Open Space Inventory)- Each New jersey municipality must establish an inventory that accurately and completely describes the lands held by the municipality for recreation and conservation purposes. This accurate and complete ROSI must accompany any application for Green Acres funding. If any element of the ROSI is inaccurate or incomplete, the municipality must file an appropriate amendment according to the protocols and procedures established by DEP. At present, Teaneck’s ROSI is not approved by Green Acres due to inconsistencies by Teaneck. The lack of an approved an updated ROSI further contributes to Teaneck’s inability to obtain further Green Acres PI funding.
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The last approved Open Space Recreation Plan (“OSRP”) approved in Teaneck is dated 2007, and expired in 2017. The OSRP is our framework for implementing our open space and recreation needs and resources. As we know, our parks provide enjoyment and positive quality of life for us as residents. An OSRP provides a way to protect our open space and recreation resources. Open space and recreation planning is more efficient and cost effective when supported by a stable source of funding like a tax and an OSRP.
In 2018 (note one year AFTER the expiration of the 2007 OSRP), Teaneck began the process on drafting a new OSRP for Teaneck, with the assistance of Barbara Davis of the NJ Conservancy. The Township held meetings to hear public input (as per required by Green Acres). Some of the issues raised by the public included:
• Concern about the construction of new high-density housing developments.
• Need for tree maintenance throughout the town.
• Creation of pocket parks and expansion of existing parks, where possible.
• Expand and diversify park amenities and programs across the Township.
• Improve access and facilities at Feldman Preserve and Brett Park.
• Increase use and availability of outdoor pools.
• Increased need for parking at parks.
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Permanently protect the Route 4 Greenbelt as a park.
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Extend and preserve the Greenway along the Hackensack River.
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Alleviate flooding at Votee Park following significant storm events.
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Update the Township’s Recreation and Open Space Inventory (ROSI).
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Focus on small projects that improve existing facilities for recreation.
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Confirm the accounting for the Municipal Open Space Trust (MOST).
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Concern about the construction of the field house at Votee Park.
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Add opportunities for mountain biking, trails for walking/running.
These issues still remain open items in Teaneck. Green Acres requires the OSRP to be approved by the Township Manager and The Planning Board. In 2019, Deputy Mayor Katz, Deputy Mayor Schwartz, Councilman Dunleavy, Councilwoman Romney-Rice, Councilman Pruitt, and Councilman Kaplan all expressed their support for the OSRP to move forward. As of today, the Planning Board has still not approved the 2019 OSRP, even though Teaneck’s OSRP expired in 2017.
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BLACK LIVES MATTER: ARGONNE PARK
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Black Lives Matter was the topic of Teaneck Voices October 17th Newsletter. But Black Lives Matter does not end with one issue of Teaneck Voices Newsletter; nor does it end with the temporary mural just recently approved by Council. The reality is that along with its proud history of Model Town Government in the 1940’s, and voluntary public school desegregation in the 1960’s, Teaneck has an uncomfortable history of racial discrimination.
According to the township website, Teaneck’s two largest parks are Argonne Park, 54 acres, and Votee Park at 40 acres. Again, according to the website, Votee Park, has 19 amenities and Argonne Park, the biggest, has 6 amenities. Votee Park is located in a central area of Teaneck adjacent to the many restaurants of lower West Englewood Ave. and the Queen Anne Road “Plaza.” Argonne Park is in a purely single family residential area of the Northeast, bounded by Englewood Ave., Schoonmaker Road, Loraine Ave., Aspen Terrace, East Forest Ave., Tuxedo Square, and Bying St.
Votee Park was renamed in 1959 for Milton G. Votee, a former Councilmember considered the “visionary” of the Teaneck Park system.
In 1945, Teaneck was a solidly middle class Christian community, over 99% White. In the Northeast, Teaneck bordered on Englewood’s Fourth Ward, known at the time as a “Negro Ghetto,” housing the servants of the white folks on the hills. According to Reginald Demmerell’s book Triumph in a White Suburb, “Officials in Teaneck at the time became alarmed. Members of the Town Council and the Planning Board discussed various ways to keep Negroes out. They talked about a road and a high fence. But during the Depression, the township had acquired 50 to 60 acres along the border [of Teaneck and Englewood] through the foreclosure of tax liens. The streets running through this area were dirt streets, so the Teaneck officials ordered trees planted to create a buffer zone between White Teaneck and the “Negro” Fourth Ward. The Teaneck Master Plan at that time, 1945, labeled the buffer, Argonne Park.”*
The visionary of Argonne Park, to this day a heavily treed and overgrown area with minimal amenities, was Councilmember Milton G. Votee, for whom the Teaneck park with all the bells and whistles is named.
At a special meeting of the Town Council a few weeks ago, after months of negotiating with a stalwart and dedicated group of THS students, Council approved a temporary, anonymous BLM mural in a Votee Park parking lot. Residents who commented at that Special Meeting were critical of the placement of the mural, its failure to mention Phillip Pannell, and that it was only a temporary recognition that Black Lives do matter in Teaneck. Responding to this criticism, Council members vowed that this mural was only a first step in this recognition.
At present, there is close to $3 million in Teaneck’s MOST fund. As well, the present Teaneck Council has been comfortable adding debt to the taxpayers’ load for enhanced amenities in Votee Park.
Let us propose and challenge Council to turn its attention and the town’s MOST resources to Argonne Park, as a next step in Teaneck’s ongoing commitment to Black Lives Matter, and to recognizing and redressing our own town’s racial inequities.
If you agree, write or speak to our Council members and suggest that they use our communal resources to develop Argonne Park into a jewel in the crown of diverse Teaneck.
*Reginald Dammerell. Triumph in a White Suburb. William Morrow & Co., 1968.
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A petition is being circulated by Bernard Pearson, as a citizen, although he is a member of the PPRAB, proposing mass improvements to Argonne Park. The town is evolving, and Votee Park is full, and we are expecting an influx of at least 10,000 new residents as a result of the apartment buildings going up in the North East, Palisades Avenue, and probably Cedar Lane at some point. As a result, a proposal has been made to build an indoor sports and arts facility as well as outdoor recreation facilities in the largest park in Teaneck, Argonne Park.
The proposed project will use 5.5 - 7 acres for facilities and active park space and a small portion of the remaining acreage will be landscaped into beautiful green-ways (trails and pathways linking open spaces) for experiencing the natural aesthetics of the park. The facilities could be used by residents young and old, and will be a closer park to members of the newly built 1500 Teaneck Road, than Votee Park.
This project is a prime example of one that would be great for Green Acre grants, however, we are unable to acquire those at this time. This includes the cost of a roughly $50,000 feasibility study which again could come from Green Acres, if the Planning Board and Council move on the ROSI and OSRP.
If you would like to sign the petition for this project, click here.
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Playground for Senior Citizens
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In other parts of the world, it is not uncommon to find senior citizens biking, swinging on swingsets and climbing on playground equipment designed especially for them. The first adults-only playgrounds began in China, and since then have been spreading throughout Asia and Europe, and slowly making their way to the U.S.
Teaneck Voices thinks our seniors need a safe playground for them. The playground equipment feature low-impact exercise equipment such as elliptical machines, stationary bikes, and hand-eye dexterity games. The activities are meant to improve balance and flexibility.
In addition to promoting physical health, the parks provide mental and social benefits to visitors. The senior playgrounds can serve as social gathering spaces within the community and help to combat feelings of isolation and loneliness among older generations.
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Support Teaneck Restaurants
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Kris has been baking beautiful custom cakes for ten years since she received her pastry arts degree, and bravely opened the storefront in Teaneck on July 31st during the pandemic.
If you have an occasion when you need a cake, tell her what you have in mind. She will spin her magic and make you something wonderful. In addition, she always has her tres leches, strawberry shortcake, chocolate chocolate and carrot cake slices among other delights.
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There’s a new empanada in town and it’s delicious! Kris Shum’s new bakery features beef, chicken, and her signature mushroom and cheese empanadas. Kris, a first generation Chinese-American whose parents are from Cuba, knows about empanadas.
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