Who needs more open space?
12
May
5/12/2008:
I’ve been meaning to post this for a few days… but who else saw this posting on the Hoboken City Website?
Not for nothing, I do think it’s great that kids can safely play in the street, but when it becomes city PR that we have to close down streets and cause traffic problems to create open space, it doesn’t rub me the right way. Is it ok for ball playing in the street? What about damage to vehicles? Or injury to kids? Shouldn’t everything be padded with spongy artificial grass surfaces?? Gosh!
Despite it being during an “off time” in Hoboken, what do you think of this (yet another) Mayor Photo-Op? Am I wrong to think something just isn’t right?
Connors School “Play Street” Opens
Mayor David Roberts, Hoboken School Board Member James J. Farina and Councilwoman Dawn Zimmer visited Connors School to celebrate the new ordinance designating the closing to vehicular traffic of 2nd Street between Madison Street and Monroe Street between the hours of 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. on school days for children to use as a “ Play Street ”. Parking will also be prohibited during the selected time period on Second Street (both sides) beginning at the easterly curb line of Madison Street and extending to the westerly curb line of Monroe Street . The “ Play Street ” was opened to the children on Friday, May 2 nd and will remain open on school days through June 26 th . Also pictured with Mayor Roberts are Connors School Vice Principal John Bussanich, Second Grade teachers Camille Ryan and Veronica Pardo, as well as children from both of their respective classes.
Hoboken, Open Space, Play Street, Connors School, Mayor David Roberts
21. ShhhDontTell | May 12th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
So if Wallace School frees up space in their building by sending the little ones to another location, and the trailers in the lot can be taken out, do the BOE people get to park in that lot again? I realize Wallace has a playground, but maybe the kids from Brandt can walk over and use it.
or - - - Can they building a parking garage for all district teachers to use? How high up do you think they could build on that land?
22. Foster | May 12th, 2008 at 8:44 pm
I don’t know about Wallace. I thought this street closing was for recreation. Maybe the same at Brandt, but the street closing seems to coincide with begining and end of the day.
I heard they are thinking of removing the parking from the Demerest schoolyard to return it to the kids for play. That is similar to Wallace, but Wallace has both a playground and parking.
23. MF | May 13th, 2008 at 10:39 am
what a dopey, dopey idea offered up by the dim-witted likes of David Roberts and all the uneducated fools at City Hall. instead of doing the hard work of impletmenting park space, they just take the current cityscape and recarve it. dumb dumb inarticulate uneducated fools
24. westy | May 13th, 2008 at 10:59 am
Will City Hall do the hard work and actually increase open space in Hoboken ? I hope so. We have already heard the pre-election posturing promises for more parks, maybe they will actually go beyond talk to reality.
Is this a quick fix sure, but that is all we have right now and the kids seem to enjoy it.
25. hobokenj | May 13th, 2008 at 11:06 am
Park space would not change this from happening. Unless the park is part of the school. You cant take kids on a field trip 4 blocks away to go to the park, even if there was one. This is just to get the kids outside for a bit and is done in most towns in Hudson County. The small playgrounds attached to the schools are not big enough for the amount of kids that go to these schools now.
26. manolo | May 13th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
a new soccer field in back of Daves house happening soon!
27. bradykp | May 14th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
hobores wrote:
in all fairness, i grew up in a rural area that space was not an issue. for whatever reason, my 1-3 grade elementary school’s “recess area” was a paved plot behind the school. we could play hop scotch, dodgeball, and other games that did not require falling. i don’t recall anyone ever scraping themselves. we seemed to manage ok.
point is, i don’t think it’s that uncommon for kids’ recess time to occur on pavement and not on grass.