New Wesley Bishop Field Ready for Coming-Out Party

Township manager Scott Carew says the field will be open—at least temporarily—for this weekend's big lacrosse festival.

CLARIFICATION: The projected revenue figures from sponsorships provided by some of the township sports clubs last year no longer apply, since the township is running the sponsorship program. The field sponsorship program is separate from the commitments made by the sports organizations to help the township pay down debt for capital recreation projects, according to township manager Scott Carew.   __________________ About six months after it began its transformation into a turf field, the lower field at Wesley Bishop North is expected to be open for business—if only temporarily—this weekend, just in time for the Moorestown Lacrosse Club's (MLC) annual festival.  Township manager Scott Carew said the field itself has been ready for some time…

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Should Moorestown Have Girls-Only Flag Football?

If you haven't already, chip in your 2 cents for Moorestown Youth Flag Football's survey—and do it before April 10.

UPDATE: Based on initial results from Moorestown Youth Flag Football's survey, 94 percent of middle and high school-aged girls prefer a girls-only division, while nearly half of girls from first through sixth grade prefer coed.  However, before it proceeds, the league needs more feedback, according to commissioner Greg Giannone.  To have your opinion counted, click on the following link and fill out the survey before Wednesday, April 10: http://girlsonly.moorestownflagfootball.org Giannone provided a preview of what a girls-only division might look like: According to Giannone, there are approximately 19,000 middle/high school girls playing in girls-only leagues across the country.  The results of the survey will be posted sometime before …

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Pete

9:53 pm on Wednesday, April 3, 2013

LK: Well, then you would also be against women being equal to men in the military, would you not? In four years these “older girls” will be able to join the Marines. In 6-8 years they will be competing with men in the workplace – the sooner they learn how to live in what, I’m told, seems to still be a man’s world, the better off they will be. I believe in gender equality in all aspects and …   more ›

Change Orders, Civility Pledge Approved by Council

Find out what you missed at last week's town Moorestown council meeting, including when they're going to introduce the 2013 budget.

Township council approved multiple change orders last week—totaling roughly $38,000—for ongoing athletic field projects. They are:  Some constituents have been critical of council over the field projects and their associated change orders, to which Mayor Stacey Jordan responded: "We take change orders very seriously, and we want to make sure if they're being asked for, they're absolutely necessary. We're very careful with what we spend our money on." In other business, council members agreed to a "Civility Pledge" introduced by Councilman Greg Newcomer. The overall purpose of the pledge is to ensure interactions among council members—and their constituents—are as amicable and respectful as possible. (Check out the attached PDF to read the …

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Our Town

3:37 pm on Wednesday, March 27, 2013

They should have refused. Regardless of the intent of the pledge, we should learn from national politics that these types of behavioral pledges are simply being a bad idea. Either way, the topics addressed in this particular pledge are called the responsibilities of being a functioning adult in normal society. It saddens me that there needs to be a separate pledge for that.   more ›

Change Orders for Field Projects on Council's Plate

Plus, the construction manager for the town hall project gave a brief update at this week's council meeting.

For those who couldn’t make it to this week’s township council meeting, there were a few interesting items that didn’t make it into a full story, but were nonetheless noteworthy. Here are a few leftover tidbits from the meeting: Council will hold its next meeting at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 18 in the IT room at Moorestown High School.

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Wesley Bishop Field Project Addition Rejected

Members of council denied the Moorestown Lacrosse Club's request to add another playing field.

Town council shot down an addition to the Wesley Bishop North field project Monday, wary of increasing the cost of the project without private dollars to fund it. The Lacrosse Club requested a $36,815 change order for the project to add a third, natural grass field so it has more room for games and practices. When the project was initially conceived, the engineer designed the field so it would have two 165x210-foot turf fields side by side—a design supposedly agreed upon by all the parties involved, including the township and the athletic clubs. However, due to the immense popularity of the Lacrosse Club—which currently has between 450 to 500 kids enrolled, according to recreation director Theresa Miller—the organization is seeking a third…

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What You Missed From This Week's Council/BOE Meetings

Moorestown council got a lot done this week, including approval of two park projects (without using any Open Space money), and provided an update on reassessment.

For those who couldn’t make it to Monday night’s particularly eventful township council meeting, there were a few interesting items that didn’t make it into a full story, but were nonetheless noteworthy. Here are a few leftover tidbits from the meeting: Township council will hold its next regular meeting at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 24, in the IT room at Moorestown High School. ____________________ In addition to selecting a new board member and hiring a new principal, the Moorestown Board of Education this week also adopted (on first reading) a new policy allowing students to use their personal technology—smartphones, iPads, etc.—in the classroom. "The basic idea is, this is how our students are learning these days—why not take advantage of…

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Volunteers Designing Moorestown Open Space Brochure

Members of the Open Space Advisory Committee, along with other volunteers including a Moorestown High School grad, want to use the brochure to highlight Moorestown's trails.

Ever wondered where all the open space in Moorestown is? If so, the township’s Open Space Advisory Committee (OSAC) has just the thing. Committee members and other volunteers are in the process of designing a brochure highlighting some of Moorestown’s more inconspicuous open space properties, according to OSAC chair Maura Dey. “It started with some of the smaller spaces that we have that I don’t think people are aware of,” said Dey, using as an example a tiny pocket park at Pleasant Valley Avenue and Lakeview Drive that doesn’t get much attention but has “pretty trees, Nipper … It’s a great idea for a picnic.” The brochure—tentatively titled “Take a Hike in Moorestown”—will primarily cast a spotlight on the township’s many trails, such as …

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Letters to the Editor

Letter: Poop Problem at Parks Stinks

A Moorestown resident has a simple, but stern, message for dog walkers at township parks: Clean up after your pooches.

To the editor: Let me start this by saying I am not a dog hater. I am, however, a dog poop hater. I hate having to step around it at Memorial Field and Pryor Park. I hate picking it up from the fields before the kids play sports, and I really hate washing it off of my daughter’s cleats after soccer practice.   I am sure many Patch readers that let their dogs run at Memorial, Pryor Park and Wesley Bishop are screaming “not me.” I am also sure many readers are responsible, courteous owners and pick up after their dogs. But somebody isn’t and it is out of control. It is embarrassing when people from other towns come to the fields and you have to guide them through the poop-laden grass and warn them about where to step. It is a disgrace that …

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Townie

4:04 pm on Thursday, August 30, 2012

http://www.ecode360.com/10345406   more ›

Letters to the Editor

Democrats: Kudos to Council, But Leave Trust Fund Alone

The Democratic candidates for Moorestown council give credit to the current council for bonding the Wesley Bishop project, and ask that they fund it without using Open Space dollars.

To the editor: We are thrilled that the Moorestown council has reversed course, and is now supporting the action we proposed in our July 30 letter to the editor on funding the field improvements at Wesley Bishop North Park.  In our letter, we advocated paying for this project through the fiscally responsible process of bonding, and not by taking the entire amount from the Open Space Trust Fund. Last night, the council voted 5–0 to move this project forward by approving, on first reading, the bond ordinance. The community has come together admirably and found significant sources of alternative funding, including sponsorships, which will significantly reduce the burden on the taxpayers. We applaud this action. The funding for the debt …

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