Page 10 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • July 31, 2013 Artificial turf (continued from page 3) “We have turf fields at the high school. I’d like to see Glen Rock children play on grass. That would give them something to look forward to.” Turf advocates, however, said the exist- ing natural field was so beat up that it might eventually become useless, and that sched- uling games, now that both girls and boys frequently play team sports, was problem- atic. “It’s not a viable place. The use is just dangerous,” one proponent said. The borough council made no decision last week and set no date for making a deci- sion, contrary to e-mails and rumors that brought out a standing-room-only crowd, balanced about evenly between both sides of the issue. Mayor van Keuren, speaking before he opened the floor to the public, said that no decision would be made that night and that no decision is pending, contrary to infor- mation available online. “These messages were not generated by the council,” the mayor said. “We are NOT on the verge of making a decision.” Mayor van Keuren said there were a lot of questions still in the discussion stage about design, and especially about finance, and that there was no decision pending to commit taxpayer money to the proposed project at present. William Huisking, the first resident to speak, said he had originally been concerned when the reported amount of money report- edly dropped from more than $100,000 to $60,000, but had investigated and was now satisfied that the Game On group was doing an honest job. Huisking, however, flatly opposed using taxpayer money for the proposed turf. He said his taxes have increased from $7,000 to $14,000 in the past 10 years and that using taxpayer money for a project whose supporters were only part of the public was unconscionable. “There’s no such thing as a free lunch,” Huisking said. “My daughter is a great dancer, but I don’t expect you to pay for that.” Each side received applause when they made their points. “Where does the water go?” one young man asked of the drainage if impervious artificial turf were to replace the grass on Faber Field. Cindy Mehallow of the Glen Rock Envi- ronmental Committee said that investing $2 million in the Diamond Brook area, for all practical terms a flood plain, is not a good idea. Stewart and other turf proponents had assured the council that Game On would raise all necessary funds and would not ask for taxpayers’ money when the council first gave a tentative approval for artificial turf on part of Faber Field. Council members who are involved in raising donated funds had warned that the financial climate was not encouraging. Fundraising started with large pledges, but the last count indicated that about $60,000 was on hand as opposed to the $2 million that is now deemed neces- sary. While sports advocates said that their programs would be troubled by the condi- tion of Faber Field, opponents said artificial turf is environmentally undesirable and the fiscal situation does not make bonding desirable for the majority of Glen Rock tax- payers. Human trafficking (continued from page 3) head of victim services for the New Jersey State Police. Castro and Mari were in atten- dance for educational purposes as New Jer- sey’s police departments develop resources to deal with human trafficking. Sunset Rotary Club offers members the opportunity to interact with experts in many fields so they can become more knowledge- able and more able to offer assistance to those in need. There are over 35,000 Rotary clubs with 1.2 million members in over 150 countries. Rotarians believe that, to change the world, members start with a commit- ment to “Service Above Self.” In more than 34,000 clubs worldwide, members volunteer in communities at home and abroad to support education and job training, provide clean water, combat hunger, improve health and sanitation, and eradicate polio. Contact Rotary Club Presi- dent Tom Shea at (201) 447-4215 or Mem- bership Chairman Steve Wolferman at (201) 483-7193.