Politics & Government

Walsh Pool Area Targeted for Skate Park Relocation

The borough's county open space grant for the skate park project expires in June.

If council moves quickly, Fair Lawn skaters may again have a place to kick, push and coast by summer.

At Tuesday's work session, borough manager Tom Metzler proposed relocating the town's skate park -- pieces of which are currently in storage -- to the Walsh Pool area on Harristown Road by the .

"There’s plenty of parking, it’s a rather large track, it’s away from any homes that there there would be any disruption," Metzler said during a sales pitch to council on the new location.

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Last June, the borough opened the Warren Point Annex Skate Park at a converted tennis court on 30th Street and Pellack Drive, but the set up lasted less than a month before .

The borough, which already has spent $35,000 on the park's equipment, has until June to successfully relocate the skate park or lose county open space grant funding for the project.

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"We’ve spent money on all this equipment, apparently all these ramps and everything, which is reimbursable from the county," Metzler said. "But you don’t get the grant until you complete the project. Well, all that equipment sitting in a shed somewhere doesn’t constitute completing the skate park, so [council] has to come up with a new location."

Council members were amenable to the prospect of filling Walsh Pool and converting the area to usable recreation space, barring steep costs.

"I can’t see us ever refilling it [with water] and reopening the pool," said councilman Ed Trawinski, who consented to move forward with the relocation, subject to knowing the costs. "The attendance [at Walsh Pool] we monitored for years, it was next to nothing."

Councilwoman Lisa Swain suggested expanding the project further to include a sand volleyball court.

“Obviously we have to take care of the skate park," Swain said, "but if we are doing anything, it’s such a nice area for some other things.”

Metzler said he would investigate cost figures for the proposed relocation and report back to council.


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