Borough Considers Ordinance to Partially Fund Permanent Lights at Lieder Field

The future of Lieder Field seems a big brighter.

At last night's borough council meeting, a proposal made by the New Providence Partnership for Recreation to construct permanent lights at the field was discussed and a new ordinance to bond $110,000 of the project's projected $227,000 cost was introduced.

With $75,000 already raised by the partnership — whose members come from borough organizations such as Band Parents, the Police Athletic League, the Athletic Foundation and the Soccer Association — and $50,000 from the Union County Kids Recreation Trust Fund Grant, the borough's proposed ordinance to bond $110,000 will help the two-phase project come to fruition.

"The first phase would involve the installation of two light poles and all the electric power necessary for a full four-pole system," said Councilman and Finance Chairman Michael Gennaro. "The cost of phase one would be $205,042 and in that cost would be electrical work sufficient enough to cover the entire installation so you wouldn't have to rip things up when you want to put the second two poles in."

The second phase, when the partnership has the funds, would involve an expenditure of $72,591, Gennaro said.

Gennaro reiterated that of the project's total cost, $50,000 would come from the Kids Recreation Trust Fund Grant while $75,000 was raised by the partnership and will be turned over to the borough.

"The borough would take out the bond issue for the remainder. The actual bond issue would be paid by the New Providence Partnership in Recreation," Gennaro said. "Now, of course, if for some reason they couldn't come up with the money, couldn't fund it, the borough would in fact be on the hook to pay for that bond issue."

But Gennaro said it is unlikely the partnership will not be able to pay back the bond. Borough Administrator Douglas Marvin added that the partnership has agreed to pay back the borough over the next ten years through their own fund-raising efforts.

Marvin said he recently discussed this proposal with Borough Engineer Andrew Hipolit, who has studied the proposal and similar projects that were awarded bids, including one in Roselle Park, and Hipolit believes the project bids will come in lower than projected.

"The thought was that the total money we have in hand now may very well be enough to complete the entire project and the thought is that we would bid the entire project with alternatives to see if we were able to get it done all at one time instead of in two phases," Marvin said.

Due to the fund-raising efforts throughout the last year, Bill Harvey from the Athletic Foundation said they can now retire all debt incurred to place turf on Lieder Field.

"That's the position we are currently at. Beyond that, we have collected $75,000, as previously mentioned, to go towards this next project, which is the continuation of what we're trying to do [at Lieder Field]," Harvey said.

Fund-raising efforts will now be toward this lighting project, said Harvey, and the they expect to cover the debt from the $110,000 borough bond.

Mayor John Thoms said the borough will have a hearing on this ordinance at the Dec. 20 council meeting.

"As we mentioned, we've talked about this in the past. Bill Harvey and other members of the Athletic Foundation have given a very convincing presentation on this. I think we want to move this ordinance forward."