County faces tough questions on $12.4M open space spending

Mark Bloomberg stood at the microphone last week, not with a complaint about potholes or trash pickup, but with a question that cut to the heart of how Hudson County spends millions of taxpayer dollars on parks. “Why would the county award North Bergen $650,000 out of that same fund?” he asked county commissioners, referring to a proposed upgrade at Stan Newman Field.

The exchange happened during a public hearing on $12.4 million in Open Space Trust Fund awards, a pot of money set aside to create and improve parks, playgrounds, and green spaces across Hudson County’s packed neighborhoods.

County Executive Craig Guy had already announced the 19 recommended projects at a press conference in Secaucus, including $1.35 million to turn a vacant lot at 236 Meadow Lane into the town’s newest municipal park. The idea is simple: in a county with some of the highest population density in New Jersey, every patch of green matters.

“It’s at the top of the list, making sure that we provide open space, including passive, active, and historical preservation, all rolled up into one,” Guy told Hudson County View. “When you live in a densely populated county like ourselves, it’s priority to make sure that our residents can enjoy open space.”

The county executive said his administration and the board would listen carefully to feedback before finalizing the awards.

But Bloomberg, a West New York resident who closely follows county spending, wasn’t buying the full package. He thanked the county for helping improve local parks across the board, then zeroed in on the Stan Newman Field project in North Bergen, which would receive $650,000 for upgrades.

His concerns fell into three categories: public access, wasteful spending, and what he says is money North Bergen owes the Open Space Fund. Bloomberg argued the field would be “public in name only,” locked unless used by high school athletic teams. “After the park’s upgrade, Newton Field would only be available for organized sports and would otherwise remain locked,” he said, adding that North Bergen officials had stated this on the record at a Green Acres funding hearing in February.

He also flagged what he called “excessive and unnecessary expenditures” in the project budget: $130,000 for a scoreboard, $60,000 for press boxes (“there’s virtually no press in Hudson County, let alone sports journalists”), $10,000 for 20-foot-tall foul ball poles on a t-ball field, $5,000 for a commemorative sign for Mayor Nick Sacco, and $10,000 for decorative rock painting.

“Do you know of t-ball players that can hit a ball that far?” he asked the commissioners.

Commissioner Bob Baselice, who represents North Bergen, defended the township. He said the numbers Bloomberg cited were just estimates typical in requests for proposals, and that actual costs would likely come down through the public bidding process. “I’m in full support if there are better prices when that goes out through the public bidding process that occurs,” Baselice said. “But if you look at how many applications have gone out and we compare other applications in Hudson County and other counties, they kind of fall in line.”

Baselice also disputed the claim that North Bergen owes $120,000 to the trust fund, saying it has nothing to do with the current awards. “North Bergen taxpayers contribute a portion of that money and I don’t want to see our taxpayers hurt by that,” he added.

The commissioner noted that remaining issues with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection have yet to be settled, but when that point comes, “we will deal with it.”

Backed by the trust fund, these projects are designed to give residents places to walk, play, and breathe. For a parent pushing a stroller or a family looking for a spot to throw a ball on a Saturday afternoon, the outcome matters deeply.

Bloomberg urged the county to use the time before projects begin in September to reconsider the North Bergen allocation. “I’d either put this as an interview test for them or the very first thing they look into,” he said, referencing the county’s support for an inspector general.

For now, the public hearing is over, but the conversation isn’t. Residents can follow the county commission meetings and submit feedback as the board makes final decisions. The trust fund belongs to the people of Hudson County — every commuter, every family, every kid who deserves a safe place to play.