Township committee forbids children from skateboarding and rollerblading at the Little League ball field.
By: Sarah Winkelman
MILLSTONE Township kids are now prohibited from skateboarding and rollerblading on the pavement surrounding the Little League ball field on Perrineville Road.
At its July 16 meeting, the Township Committee voted 3-0, with two abstentions, to prohibit those activities, along with rollerskating and the use of scooters, on the pavement. Those who abstained from the vote were committeemen John Pfefferkorn and Charles Abate.
Violators of the ban will face a maximum fine of $100 or a sentence of 30 days community service.
"The Little League field is being leased for specific hours of operation," Mayor Bill Nurko said at the meeting. "The residents who live near the field expect the agreement to be honored. It’s not right to introduce a new activity now. The noise of children playing may be the noise of joy, but the residents still expect some peace and quiet."
At the July 2 meeting, Mr. Abate had said the Little League field is only meant for ball games.
"Residents had enough complaints when we built the fields and installed the lights," he said. "We had to compromise with them and only allow the field to be open during games. Allowing kids to skate there when games aren’t being played would contradict our agreement and be problematic for the residents."
Mr. Abate said he abstained from the vote because he is one of the original founders of the Millstone Little League and was made an honorary member of the league’s board of directors.
According to the ordinance, in order to protect the safety of the public and township property, "it is necessary to prohibit the use of skateboards, roller skates, rollerblades and scooters" from the ball field.
At the advice of Township Engineer Gordon Milnes, the committee added an amendment to the ordinance, which restricts skating on the tennis and basketball courts near the municipal building on Millstone Road.
"The wheels cut into the coating on the ground," Mr. Milnes said at the July 2 meeting.
Mr. Abate added that the township has already had to replace the coating twice because of the damage caused by roller blades and skateboards.
"It costs us $20,000 to $30,000 to replace the coating," he said.
At the meeting, Mr. Pfefferkorn voiced strong opposition to the banning of skating at the ball field, stating that Millstone is "a vibrant community" and restricting the activities of children was a bad idea.
"I would like to see kids using the fields when games aren’t being played," he said. "I think it would be fine to restrict when they can skate, but not restrict the skating altogether. I think we should work hand in hand with the Little League team to reach a compromise."
He echoed these sentiments at the July 16 meeting, saying that he had spoken to residents about the ordinance and they were concerned.
"There are not many local facilities," he said. "In order to use Wagner Farm Park, kids would have to be driven over there by their parents."
Mr. Pfefferkorn said he abstained from the vote because voting against the ordinance would mean he disagreed with the entire ordinance, which he did not.
"A ‘no’ would have meant to me that I disagreed with the full ordinance, which I didn’t," he said Tuesday. "I agreed with the restriction during game hours only."
At the July 2 meeting, Mayor Nurko said no one goes to the fields when games aren’t being played.
"Why should people go there when they can go to Wagner Farm Park to skate," he asked.
Mr. Pfefferkorn said kids want to go to a park that is close to their homes so that someone doesn’t have to drop them off.
"Why would someone travel two miles from their home to skate when they have an area across the street?" Mr. Pfefferkorn countered.