WESTWOOD—A new pavilion will be coming soon to Brookside Park, possibly by the late summer or fall thanks to an $85,000 appropriation from the Recreation Trust Fund approved March 15 by the Borough Council.
The facility is being purchased from Ben Shaffer Recreation, Oak Ridge, who will also install it.
Although the council approved the pavilion’s purchase, officials said they don’t expect to get the structure for at least 12–16 weeks due to supply-chain delays. An official said the $85,000 includes all materials and installation, and uses no local tax dollars.
“Presently we have a picnic area where there are about 12 picnic tables and that’s the area where it will go,” said Gary Buchheister, borough recreation director.
He said the pavilion — a roof covered, permanent open-air structure — will provide a variety of options for park visitors and also allow park programs to offer shelter during light rain storms.
Councilman Robert Bicocchi said the new pavilion had been in the planning stage for about a year and that officials saw the need for it when the park’s basketball courts were recently upgraded.
The pavilion is expected to be approximately 32 feet wide by 34 feet long, Buchheister told Pascack Press. He said the pavilion will not be funded by taxpayer dollars.
Instead, the funding will come from the local Recreation Trust Fund, which generates revenues from facility rental fees from the parks and community center.
Buchheister said in a non-Covid year, the trust fund usually collects an average $50,000 to $75,000 in fees.
He said over his 14-year tenure, the mayor and council have been “very good” in allocating dollars for local park needs, providing generally 25% of matching funds for county and state Open Space grants while the Recreation Trust Fund provides the remaining 25 percent. Most county/state grants require a 50% local match in funds
He said the mayor and council are “very dedicated” to improving local parks and facilities.
Buchheister said a grade 4–8 summer recreation program could take advantage of the new pavilion; other uses include a venue for birthday party permits and covered, shaded shelter for visitors using the outdoor barbecue area.
He said Brookside Park offers plenty of parking, a playground, a lighted basketball court, ballfield, picnic area with BBQ grills, and seasonal fishing. The borough’s website says groups of 10 or more using the BBQ picnic area need a permit.
He said while Westvale Park is the only other local park with a covered pavilion, that park is “jam-packed” with two multi-purpose fields, two softball fields, a Little League baseball field, baseball, softball, and a baseball field, all lit for nighttime activity, an ADA-accessible playground, a dog park, a fieldhouse/concession stand, and a paved .06-mile walking path.
Buchheister said the new pavilion will provide local families with another park amenity to enhance their use and enjoyment of the park.
He said though the borough does not have a local Open Space Trust Fund that might provide matching grant funds, that has not been an issue as the borough and recreation trust fund provide dollars as a match for county and state grants.
Recently the borough agreed to provide funding on a $167,438.06 grant from the state’s Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund to remediate a former police pistol range at Westvale Park and return the site to its use as a passive park. (See “Spent gun range eyes new life as open space“, Pascack Press, March 7, 2022.)