Post-Irene Riverside Park Cleanup Will Happen This Spring, At The Earliest
Area resident says losing the park has been an inconvenience
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The post-Hurricane Irene cleanup of Riverside Park in West Mahwah won’t begin until this spring at the earliest, Mahwah Mayor Bill Laforet said. According to Laforet, especially with the added challenges brought by the October snowstorm, the Department of Public Works is focusing on other cleanup projects across the township.
He also said the ground condition at the park is still swamped, which complicates the cleanup. Laforet said the grass and fields are “loaded with water.” DPW Director Keith Hallissey said the department is focusing on “finishing up some of the more difficult areas for leaves,” right now, and will move on to parks after projects like that.
According to the new mayor, the “DPW is doing everything they can do and has done a remarkable job, given the magnitude of the task.”
For residents in the area, though, losing the community park has been an inconvenience. According to one West Mahwah resident, “after watching the flood waters rise and take out neighbor's house after neighbor's house, and watching rescue workers pull people out of the flood waters with a fan boat, it is depressing and frustrating to walk in our little neighborhood and see the trash and destruction from the flooding still there, four months later.”
The resident, who did not want to be identified, said her family feels the delayed cleanup has changed what was once a “quaint” neighborhood. “We discourage our son from spending time at the field because of the oil spill and trash," she said. "The field was a sheen of black for the first 2 months after the storm and if you look closely, you can still see the patches where the oil was,” she said.
The resident said some of the larger pieces of debris from the park were removed after she called Laforet to raise her concerns about the area. She said the township has been helpful, but she wishes there were a quicker way to get the park back in working order.
Her suggestion is to ask the residents of the area to pitch in. “Instead of waiting so trucks can be driven onto the field, I would love to see the town bring in a large dumpster in the upcoming weeks and put out a call for volunteers to get the debris out,” she said. “Why not take an all hands approach and move everything off the field?”
Do you agree? Is that the best way to clean up the park? Tell us in the comments.
Alice
9:35 am on Tuesday, January 3, 2012
I feel Riverside is ALWAYS the last on the townships list of projects. Just like Brakeshoe and Reich were the last on the list to get help after the storm. I look at the mess everyday and it is depressing. Its not like the town dosent see it either, the guys are there everyday after their stop at Janeks. I live just up the street and feel I cant even enjoy the field because of the mess thats always there. I guess I can wait till spring now BUT I cant wait to see how quickly they get to it then and how well it gets done!
Shana
9:49 am on Tuesday, January 3, 2012
I don't even know where this park is. I think the idea of a dumpster being placed there and having a volunteer day organized is a great way to start. How about asking Girl Scout and Boy Scout Troops to help out? Also, don't the high school students need community service hours? This would be a terrific way to earn those--instead of another food or coat drive. Good luck.
Phyllis A. Stewart
4:45 pm on Tuesday, January 3, 2012
One of my worries about the developer's plans for the Crossroads shopping mall is that the area set aside for"passive recreation" is also in a floodplain area, which will turn out to be another headache rather than a gift. This is the same situation in Continental Soldiers Park, where the bridge washed out. The Planning Board must learn from past mistakes and beware of developer's gifts which turn out to be taxpayer burdens.
Andy Schmidt
5:32 pm on Tuesday, January 3, 2012
FYI: The bridge at Continental Soldiers Park actually was not a "developer's gift". The walking path around Lake Henry (which obviously requires two bridges at the entry and exit of the Ramapo River) was an explicit requirement of the Recreation Subcommittee that wanted to see passive recreation options being offered in addition to the sports fields that were being planned there and at the Airmont Ave/Hilltop Road property (the latter was never built out of fear of a voter backlash from Apple Ridge voters).
But I do agree, that the engineer/planner who consulted the subcommittee at the time clearly underestimated the extend and force of the annual floods there.
Mari Meli
6:41 pm on Tuesday, January 3, 2012
I love the idea of the community pitching in to do the cleanup, and would gladly join. However, I am concerned about the oil slicks and think this may need to be addressed on a different level. I would not want kids there working if there were cause for concern. But if there is a way to deal with that safely, I would gladly be a part of it!
Melissa Steinberg
7:26 pm on Tuesday, January 3, 2012
I agree with Mari about the oil slicks. Sadly, kids soccer games have taken place at the field since the storm (without any clean-up). I am happy to report that there were community service crews at the park mid-day today cleaning up the debris! There's still work to be done, but it was a very nice start to see happen!
MikeS.
9:06 pm on Tuesday, January 3, 2012
@ ALICE, To say something that is not true is shamefull. How do you know who is last and please produce some sort of list if you have one. The D.P.W is short staffed and has a huge work load after the October storm. All i have heard on this site is people complaining that there street, or neighborhood has not been cleaned yet. Shame on all of you. I for one, respect out municipal workers and i know for 36 years, they have never let us down. Stop complaining, we are all waiting to have our roads cleared. And @ MELISSA... "community service crews". PRISIONERS. Community service crews do not wear orange.
Melissa Steinberg
6:29 am on Wednesday, January 4, 2012
I apologize if I stated incorrectly, I thought community service crews was a better way to state it since I did not know if it was prisoners or people that were required to provide community service instead of facing prison time; either way, I found it to be a nice solution to getting the park cleaned before spring. After Hurricane Irene, our neighborhood was let down. Irene hit before the October snow storm; and it is still a mess over here, and it went to the bottom of the priority list after the snowstorm damage, the Mayor stated so himself. People are still cleaning out their houses and rebuilding their houses. The river is covered in trash. The field did sit untouched for 2 months between Hurricane Irene and the snow storm. This isn't a knock on municipal workers. I think people simply want their neighborhoods cleaned and if there aren't enough resources out there, they want communication and to know that something will be done as quickly as possible. The Mayor said spring for the field, yet, someone somewhere did some brainstorming and found a solution to make it happen sooner. For that, I am appreciative.
Alice
2:46 pm on Wednesday, January 4, 2012
First of all a great big thank you to "The Patch" for putting storys out that seem to get some action started!! Im very happy to see some much needed progress at Riverside.
Second Melissa I completely agree. Third @MIKE S. obviously no one has an actual "list" but we can see with our own eyes areas of the town that are constantly maintained and others that are constantly neglected. Im not stating the town workers are not doing their job. I actually agree that they do a pretty good job BUT someone is dropping the ball somewhere! We would never see Continental Soldiers or Commodore Perry field in the condition that Riverside is in. I feel like it is left out of sight out of mind. Because its not on a main street its just left to last on some list somewhere. Not to mention its also used as a dumping ground in the spring with baseball sand and in the winter for mounds and mounds of snow that turned black and took forever to melt. Yes I am complaining that MY street and My neighdorhood have not been cleaned yet. I take great pride in my home and wont the surroundings to look just as nice. Dont YOU!?
MikeS.
6:20 pm on Wednesday, January 4, 2012
"Constantly maintained" WRONG. Nothing has been maintained since Irene. (go to the council mtgs. to find out) Cont. and comm perry were not hit as hard as riverside. (if they were even hit at all) Leave your house and look around town. I actually went into my vehicle, and drove the streets one day. GUESS WHAT, it was interesting to find out that i wasn't the only one with trees down. Go to some other towns in the summer and look at their fields. There nicest field is 10 times worse than Riverside ever is !!! Next : Dumping ground for snow....Here is another novel idea for you......Rent a heater and melt it ! where do you want it to go? Next time, dont buy a house next to a parking lot. And last of all... PATCH DIDNT GET THE PRISIONERS.......And yes...PRISIONERS.......They are asked for months in advance from what i understand. "The squeaky wheel gets the grease" For every 1000 people who are happy in town, and dont say anything, nothing is heard. For the 10 Loud mouths who complain....that is what everyone hears !!!
Alice
10:03 am on Thursday, January 5, 2012
To make comments like that, you clearly have no clue to what the people who live closest to Riveraide went threw during Irene. Try 4-5+ feet of water in their living rooms and kitchens. Thats a little more then a few down trees. (To the other residents who may be reading this I am NOT saying that the Oct. storm might not have been just as bad if not worse for some people. I just feel this guy dosent have any idea to what real tragedy is. I do drive around town and am well aware of other peoples hardships.) I am saying I just wont my little piece of Mahwah back to some sort of normal, which is what I think we all wont, NORMAL! As far as the snow, full of gas, oil and debris from the road, lets dump it in your backyard next time. My final comment to you sir is, I didnt buy a house next to a parking LOT I bought a house next to a PARK! And thats all Im asking for it to look like again.
MikeS.
8:31 pm on Thursday, January 5, 2012
My My My ! How about you say we. I understand what hardships are. I LOST alot. However, i am appreciative of our system and understand NOBODY is overlooked. There is no conspiracy theory here, and YES, we landed on the moon. All i am saying, is stop complaining. WE are in this together. And SOMEONE has to always be at the end of the cleanup. But one thing i know for sure is, THIS TOWN TAKES CARE OF THE PEOPLE HERE. Just the ones who dont get taken care of first, COMPLAIN.