EDISON — With some 30 parks in the township, decisions on maintenance has become an issue.
“Some parks have been neglected for decades,” said Anthony Russomanno, Edison’s Director of Department of Public Works.
Councilman Joseph Coyle presented a slideshow of photographs at a Township Council meeting on Sept. 12, which displayed graffiti on benches and playground equipment, weeds and cracks in the pavement, broken fences as well as disarray of tennis and basketball courts from various different parks he visited in the township.
The councilman said some of the maintenance issues at the parks have created unsafe conditions. The parks he visited include North Edison Park on Cleveland Place and Grove Avenue, Dwyer Park on Annette Drive and Gentore Court, Hale Park on Talmadge Road and Alexis Lane, Minnie B. Veal Park on Grove Avenue and Firethorn Drive, Portland Street Tennis Courts on Park Avenue and Portland Street, and the Boat Basin on Meadow Road.
“We should have more periodic maintenance for the parks,” Coyle said, adding just like a homeowner has responsibility of maintaining their property, the township should have equal responsibility of its properties. “I don’t believe we have the manpower that needs to get this done.”
Russomanno, who said he could always use more employees, said the public works department had planned to go out and repair the fence at the Portland Street Tennis Courts; however, it would cost the township $23,000.
“[Maintenance] takes time and money … it’s expensive,” he said, adding the price tag for the fence is not in their budget.
Councilman Alvaro Gomez said in some situations, the township is dealing with vandalism.
“I had the supervisor of parks reach out saying ‘We need to get the police department involved’,” he recalled in one instance. “We go out, clean it, paint it, and not even a day later it gets vandalized so it’s a combination of things … it’s a combination of whether a park is being used our not. We all agree routine maintenance needs to take place, but there are other factors.”
Gomez said township officials are in the midst of a utilization labor analysis on the township parks. He said it’s important to look at the long-term rather than sinking some $23,000 to fix a fence in a park that is not getting used.
The councilman said township officials have to analyze whether a park is being used and if not, decide whether or not it will serve a better purpose.
“It might not take a $23,000 investment, it may take a $100,000 investment, but [the investment can be] something we can give back to the residents and be used as a benefit to the community as opposed to a $23,000 fence in a park no one is using,” Gomez said.
Russomanno said the next best step is to sit down with the council’s park committee and discuss the maintenance of the parks.
Council President Ajay Patil said for now he asked Coyle, who serves on the park committee, to meet with the administration and work on a short-term plan on park maintenance.
