HILLSDALE—Scores of residents — including from sports and recreation teams — pressed the Borough Council Oct. 10 to improve recreation fields for teams’ and youngsters’ access to safe and well-maintained grounds.
The pleas followed the borough engineer’s report that found installing artificial turf on Centennial Field was likely to cost up to four times estimates due to environmental work it would entail.
Following a report from Colliers Engineering and Design engineer Jamie Giurintano on environmental challenges at Centennial Field, which local officials had been planning for years to upgrade with artificial turf, council members and residents expressed disappointment.
Giurintano said the work needed to install artificial turf at Centennial Field would disrupt the landfill cap and that would drive up costs. Centennial Field is built on a former landfill site closed and capped around 1986, said the engineer.
Initial estimates to upgrade Centennial Field were $4 million to $4.5 million a year ago, but due to issues with having to disturb the underlying landfill, regrading, and difficult drainage prospects, Giurintano said there were “a lot of challenges the borough has to overcome.”
Giurintano said the costs could likely double, triple or quadruple from initial estimates to improve Centennial Field’s stormwater drainage and install artificial turf there for multiple sport uses. This jump was mainly due to work required to maintain the landfill’s cap and prevent infiltration at the landfill. Officials stressed that the air quality there is monitored.
Officials said that the Fields Committee, composed of Council President Anthony DeRosa, councilmembers Abby Lundy and John Escobar, and the borough administrator and recreation director, would review the report. Colliers’ engineers said they were reviewing how to improve stormwater management at Centennial.
DeRosa said they would review information supplied by resident James Lawler, who suggested new artificial turf fields for Memorial Park, Beechwood Park, and a Stonybrook Park Soccer and Lacrosse Field, all designed by FieldTurf, an artificial turf company he suggested.
Mayor John Ruocco told Lawler that municipal government moves slowly, noting that initial discussion to improve Centennial Field started 4–5 years ago when DeRosa asked what might be done at Centennial. He said estimates were then about $2 million.
“We are taking it seriously,” Ruocco said of the fields, noting the borough in 2024 would likely move ahead with upgrades.
DeRosa said he’s aware of poor field conditions, noting he has coached in town and was “extremely” disappointed with the news that Centennial Field’s upgrade was determined to be so difficult and costly. “That was going to be our major step in giving football and lacrosse a multi-use facility,” and including soccer and baseball use.
DeRosa said residents’ appeals for better fields “were not falling on deaf ears” and noted improving recreation facilities was one reason why he sought election to the council. He said the Fields Committee would ask the engineers to come up with a plan for better drainage of Centennial Field without artificial turfing, and also include better lighting.
He said he hoped to maintain current field uses for sports using Centennial Field. DeRosa said he wants to convene a group of stakeholders and the Fields Committee to recommend ideas for improving Centennial Field and other recreation fields.
He also said he would like to hear more from the FieldTurf company and what they might do on other local recreation fields.
Lundy said the council approved “numerous different remediations” on Centennial FIeld because they were told it was the best option to improve.
Despite the geotechnical report findings, she said, “We’re not abandoning the children, we’re not abandoning any project, we want to fix this so please don’t think that we’re blowing smoke, or we’re not going to move forward. We want to do the best thing for the fields, for the town, for the taxpayers.”
Nearly a dozen residents at the meeting urged local officials to prioritize field improvements to help local sports teams, some noting how embarrassed they are when comparing local recreational facilities to out-of-town athletic fields.
Borough Administrator Mike Ghassali—also Montvale’s mayor—said he would fast track the improvements at Centennial Field with the committee and council. He said he helped develop six recreation fields in Montvale.
“Once they (Fields Committee and Council) say go I’ll put out a timeline of events and you’ll know…exactly what’s going to happen,” said Ghassali. He said residents have “an ally” in the borough administrator.
Chief FInance Officer David Young said when council authorizes a capital project to improve fields, there is no delay in starting construction if bonding is required. He said the only potential restriction is that municipal bond debt is tied to school bond debt, and might be limited by a large school bond.