April 30, 2014 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 13 Midland Park Sunday morning play discussion is replay of long ago It is déjà vu when it comes to the Sunday morning use of borough-owned fields for organized sports in Midland Park. The borough council last week came to an under- standing with representatives of the sports organizations to allow Sunday games beginning at 10 a.m., but the agreement will not be put in writing. It will not be codi- fied into an ordinance nor subject to the public hearing process an ordinance change would require. The current discussion is the result of a 35-year-old decision made by another council to bypass an ordinance change on the same issue. The decision this time around followed a lengthy discussion during last week’s borough Chamber to hold Business Card Exchange The Midland Park Chamber of Commerce will hold a Business Card Exchange on Wednesday, May 7 at 7:30 p.m. at Atlantic Stewardship Bank, 630 Godwin Avenue. Members are invited to bring a friend who is not a member. The Chamber’s Special Events Coordinator, Lisa Plasse, will give a brief overview of the organization’s activities for the year ahead. For additional information contact President Dr. Lori Nuzzi at 201-447-2570. council meeting, at which the board of recreation chair- man, sports enthusiasts, a church pastor, the mayor, coun- cilmen and other residents weighed in on both sides of the issue. The item was not on the agenda, however. At the center of the controversy was the borough’s ordinance on park use, originally adopted in 1973 and amended in 2007, which simply says that “the hours between which the Vander Meer and Dairy Street Fields (and the Junior League Field) may be used shall be between dawn and dusk….” Councilman Mark Braunius, the liaison to the Board of Recreation, said he had been approached by the board members about the issue, and upon research had discov- ered that Sunday morning play is not prohibited. Unoffi- cially, Sunday play up to now has begun at 1 p.m. Board of Recreation President Robert Sansone said most traveling team games have to be played out of town because Midland Park doesn’t have enough fields to accommodate all the games, particularly in case of make- up games. Starting games at 10 a.m., he said, permits the addition of another game with rest time in between. He said there are 113 children in the traveling program ages eight through 14. Sansone said up to now the sports organizations had been abiding by the 1 p.m. rule, and they did not want to make changes without the council’s approval, even though the rule is not written down anywhere. “The 1 p.m. start has taxed our players. We have to schedule double headers for make up games, and it makes scheduling very difficult,” said Kyle Kuhnel, president of the Midland Park Baseball Association. Sunday play on town fields was allowed by the council as a result of an unbinding public referendum in 1979. The petition to place the question on the ballot was spear- headed by the soccer association, and met with strong opposition from “Save Our Sundays,” a citizens commit- tee concerned with the quality of life of the residents of the recreation area and the possibility of discrimination against children who could not participate because of family values or church attendance. Play time restrictions were considered once the referendum was approved, but ultimately the council did not change the existing ordi- nance, claiming the ban was more a matter of interpreta- tion. Frank Post of Franklin Avenue, who has a long history of participation in the sports organizations and had been involved in the referendum effort, said that the referendum was sold to the voters on the promise that there would be no morning play to compete with church services. “It’s going back on a promise,” said Post. Tony Vuolo, a long time member and former president of the Board of Recreation agreed.”The Board of Recreation promised no games before 1 p.m.,” Vuolo said. Rev. Karen Popjes of Oak Hill Road said it was unfair to make families choose between sports and church, and possibly having to sit the bench if missing a game or prac- tice. She said not all churches have several services to choose from to avoid the conflict. Jerry Iannone of Birch Street said the teams should be allowed to play since there is no written prohibition. “The law should be followed,” he said. He said his church has several services to choose from. Councilman Nick Papapietro said it was better to have youngsters playing on the fields than playing video games indoors. Councilman Jack Considine said parents should be the ones to make the decision, not the council. Councilman Scott Pruiksma said that even though times change, Midland Park does not necessarily have to change. “People move to town for the respect for the day,” Pruiksma said, adding that perhaps another referendum would be in order. Borough Attorney Robert Regan said the council could authorize him to draft a change to the ordinance if it wished to define the hours of use. “It’s up to the parents how they want to bring up their children,” said Mayor Patrick “Bud” O’Hagan, “but we should define dawn to dusk. I can already see someone wanting to push the envelope.” “We’re not looking for you to rewrite the ordinance. Has anyone abused the rule?” said Sansone. “We get it. We’re trying to make it easier for everybody,” he added.