From the Daily News:The Queens Falcons say the Parks Department is trying to push the budding athletes out of Juniper Valley Park and onto artificial turf far from the home of 225 players.
[Coach Tim Cavanaugh] scoffed at the idea that a move to other fields is good for the kids, saying the artificial surfaces might contain toxins.
"Used tires are used to fill these fields - the same tires that gather petroleum, chemicals and toxins from the road," Cavanaugh said in a recent letter.
He also said that youth soccer programs regularly stomp across the Juniper Valley outfield grass in cleats for their matches.
Before the Parks Department rejected the Falcons' permit request last month, the program had been given permission to play at Juniper Valley for 20 years, the suit claims.
If the Falcons are banned from the dirt there, they might have to cancel the upcoming football schedule because nearby turf fields don't have lights or enough parking for games, the suit says.
The field at Juniper Valley has an emotional hold on the players and coaches.
A memorial banner there pays tribute to Greg Hoffman's brother, Stephen, who died in the Sept. 11 attacks.
"We want to play on grass fields that honor Stephen Hoffman," Cavanaugh said.
10 comments:
How "Green" is that? Neighborhood kids aren't allowed to play in their own parent-funded-by-taxes parks?
This Nannytown in the Nannystate is disgusting.
Maybe they think someone related to that team is behind the arborcide and it is pay-back. Unfair to the innocent, but it sends a message.
Anonymous said...
"Maybe they think someone related to that team is behind the arborcide and it is pay-back. Unfair to the innocent, but it sends a message."
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Does anonymous have some information on the tree vandalism? Has that info been shared with the police?
Or, is anonymous just spouting ignorant comments based upon ____? Upon what?
Since the vandalism started in connection with complaints about the tree's interference with play by children, a reasonable person could surmise there may be a connection or that someone in authority may be drawing that conclusin.
Again, this is not proof of anything, but keeping the children from using the park at all may send a message to whoever has done this that the replacement trees better not be touched.
I am not saying there is a direct connection between the two, but the Park's Department may be drawing that conclusion. Otherwise, why the close proximity of the two events? Certainly if you want the children not to be bothered by trees one way is to tell the children to play in a different park.
I love children, but $20,000 dollars worth of vandalism is serious. Perhaps this will serve as impetus to turn the vandal in.
Since when are trees more important than keeping kids out of trouble and teaching them sportsmanship while getting them to excercise? If trees are planted in the locations where kids once played sports, whose bright idea was that?
Great job Dottie. Didn't she also boot out the car show guys from Forest Park who collect donations for St. Mary's CHILDREN'S hospital in Bayside? Does she have something against kids?
Who says the trees were all in the way of where the children played sports? And if they were, they could have been dug up and replanted elsewhere.
Instead someone took it on himself to cause $20,000 dollars worth of damage and make sure that the entire area would be closed to the children so that the damage could be repaired.
This idiot is like the man who illegally built a ball field without proper permits in Long Island, dumped tons of mud in his downhill neighbor's land and pool and then accused the neighbor of being against children when he was forced to undo the damage and pay restitution for the $30,000 worth of damage he did.
first of all the queens falcons doesn't have anything to do with cutting down trees. they're trying to stay in juniper park! they have been playing football for over twenty years and never had a problem, qns commiss' excuse to get them out is that NYC parks doesn't want football on grass and have to be on turf, hello there is a turf field at juniper park. why is it ok to have soccer on the grass but not football? i believe the parks department is behind the tree cutting and trying to blame it on the football. i find it so insulting that anyone would try to blame a great organization that helps young boys!! so stop trying to put the blame on them.
I doubt they are behind the tree cutting since they have the money taken directly out of their budget and any employee who did it on his own would be fired, fined, sued and jailed.
I do believe some fool who thought he was helping the children is behind this, not the children by any means.
Regardless, the damage was done. The pieces of tree cannot be left to trip people, break their legs, impale them etc.
This means someone is going in with cultivating equipment, taking out those stumps, putting down new turf, new seeds, new trees. This will need the Fall and Winter to take and grow.
Blame the nature of groundskeeping and a fool's idea for what is happening to those kids.
I do believe some fool who thought he was helping the children is behind this, not the children by any means.
maybe it someone from the soccer league and making the football look bad, so they can be on the grass. i still find it insulting that someone would think the football is behind this, they're trying to stay at juniper park!
better yet, so easy to blame someone isn't it! maybe it's you that's cutting down the trees... doesn't feel good to be blamed?
falcons have been at the park for over twenty years and never had a problem until this queens commiss' decided to rid of them. so please don't throw stones at the league..
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