Community Gets Together To Revamp Park Space

If all goes according to plan, the park next to the Boys and Girls Club of Hoboken will be revamped next spring. The Boys and Girls Club and HoLa, the new charter school coming to the building in September, are partnering with the community and the city to revamp the place adjacent to the building. 

The park currently has worn down play equipment and no benches. 

The Boys and Girls Club and HoLa are looking to secure a grant from Kaboom, an organization that grants money to help build playgrounds. No money has been allocated to the project yet, said Scott D'Aloise, who is on the Boys & Girls Club advisory board. 

He said he would like to see the park completed by next spring. 

Part of the Kaboom grant—if awarded—would mean that the park gets revamped in a day, with help from members of the community. Especially physical labor volunteers are needed. 

Kaboom requires the community to raise ten percent of the money needed for the park, said D'Aloise. How much that will be will depend on the amount of money Kaboom will give the Boys & Girls Club and HoLa. 

If the park can be built with a grant, there is almost no cost to the city. The City will help with removing the current equipment and leveling the uneven ground. 

Fourth Ward Councilman Michael Lenz attended the meeting and asked for a "drop dead date." The date on which the park will be finished will depend on when the money comes in, D'Aloise said, but said he'd like to see it be ready in the spring/summer 2011. 

The parents who attended the meeting expressed hope for some new equipment and some benches, for those who just want to relax in the park or watch their children. 

"Anything would be an improvement," said Jennifer Hindman Sargent, who is on the HoLa Board of Directors. She said the new park is a good illustration of how HoLa wants to partner and work together with the rest of the community. 

Hoboken Director of Environmental Services Jennifer Wenson Maier said she is very excited about the project. An official meeting—with 30 days notice, scheduled on a weeknight in accordance with the Open Public Meeting Act—will be held soon too, she said. 

"I wanted to get the ball rolling as soon as possible," she said.