Youth football and cheer league squeezed out of Smith’s Clove Park

Representing the Monroe-Woodbury Youth Football and Cheer League, treasurer Eric Rosenthal turned to the Monroe Village Board for guidance on how to address what his organization felt was the unfair limitation of their use of local football fields.

Speaking at the March 4 meeting, Rosenthal said that his league was denied access to the football field at Smith’s Clove Park. He explained that most of the participants are local to the area, and that the league is looking for a place to play without having to pay for fields outside of the town and village.

Rosenthal claimed that several members, including Chairman Chris Sullivan, of the Monroe Joint Parks & Recreation Commission, which oversees activities at Smith’s Clove, were affiliated with a different league that does have access to the field at that park. He also contended that, given the small number of home games for each of the leagues, the park should be able to accommodate both groups. He added that even being able to have a portion of their games and practices at the Smith’s Clove field would save the league a lot of money.

Airplane Park updates

In other park news, the village of Monroe is still seeking volunteers and donations for its updates to Airplane Park. Trustee Andrew Ferraro shared that while the village has already received materials from many sponsors and interest from community members, both skilled and unskilled workers are still needed to help with the build week beginning April 7. Ferraro explained that the park will be all-inclusive and include such attractions as a two 100-foot ziplines. More information on the project can be found on the village website.

Street lights

During the meeting, Trustee John Karl commented on the number of street lights that remain broken, prompting a discussion on how to best address the issue. Dwyer noted that 129 lights have been reported and that Senator James Skoufis has been notified of this issue. Karl contended that the village should get credit for the time those lights were out and that the village should write to the state’s Public Service Commission informing them of the issue. Trustee Debbie Behringer agreed, saying other municipalities have the same issue.

Sewer issues

Karl also provided an update on proposed upgrades to the Orange County Sewer District, reporting that the expansion to the sewer treatment plant would cost about $185 million. He noted that if the county receives state and federal grants, it would lessen the financial burden on taxpayers in the district.