January 17,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, according to Councilmen Ramon Hache’s latest news letter , the Village Council rescinded the 2015 resolution that included a 90 ft. baseball diamond and a 120 x 75 yard multi-purpose field. To be clear, a 90 ft. diamond refers to the distance between the bases, not the depth of the outfield. The 2015 plan would have led to the clear-cutting of most of the trees on the property and the athletic fields component would have taken up more than 4 acres (total size of the property is 7 acres).
The Councilmen states, ” The Schedler property presented a few challenges, some of which were immediate and some required some planning into the future. There were numerous dead trees, hanging limbs and leaning trees that had to be removed immediately since they posed a liability. The cleanup was authorized in October. In order to move forward on planning for the future use of the property, the Village Council created an ad hoc committee to propose a development plan. The ad hoc committee met regularly and also reached out to residents and sports groups for input regarding their respective needs.
The ad hoc committee presented its recommendation to the Village Council in December. The new plan is significantly scaled down compared to the 2015 plan. It strikes a balance between the needs of the neighborhood, and sports groups, while taking consideration of historical preservation and passive recreation. The new plan does not include a baseball diamond and the proposed 50 x 75 yard multipurpose field only takes up a little over ¾ of an acre. The plan includes parking, a playground, walking trails, and bathrooms with a built-in overhang that can provide shelter from lightning. The next phase of planning will involve cost estimates. Only then will the Village Council be ready to move forward on a final plan.”
