With spring just around the corner, young (and not so young anymore) New Yorkers' minds turn to Pool Parties, drinking outside, sunbathing in thongs, and kickball. But dark storm clouds are gathering on the edge of McCarren Park in Williamsburg, where it seems the Parks Department wants to close off the field where the balls are kicked in order to resod it. Under the current plan, the field will be closed until July, but the kickball league starts in April! And this has the kickball contingent in a state of consternation. A tipster who attended a meeting last night tells us:
I thought it was a meeting that was to gauge interest for teams looking to play this year. Instead it was a rally call to sign a petition that is protesting the re-seeding of the McCarren Park fields. The league and league commissioner is upset that the city won't let anyone use the fields until July of this year (the season usually starts at the end of April). I can quote the league commissioner Kevin Dailey said "they started reseeding in November and obviously it's not working."
It's a bit upsetting how quickly people were ready to sign this petition when clearly McCarren park needs this. Over the past 3 or 4 years the field has become increasingly more like a giant dust bowl and I find it to be incredibly self centered to make a fuss over not being able to use the park for a few months. If anything, they should probably shut down the field for reseeding for the whole summer. Imagine McCarren park with grass again, it would be amazing!
Reached for comment, Commissioner Dailey tells us, "We want to work with the city to make it a great baseball field. We ask for this time now to plan it properly over the next few months and start the seeding up in October. It's very, very, very difficult getting field space. I don't know where we'll go. I personally don't want to play on pavement. We, the users of Gilroy field, would like the same access and ability to coordinate and plan with the city as the tennis court people do."
We're told that the Parks Department seeded the field in November but did not till the soil. That resodding effort appears to have been fruitless, and sources say Councilmember Stephen Levin wants the Parks Department to reconsider the plan to reseed the playing area at this time. We called Levin's office for comment, but his spokesman would not discuss the Councilmember's kickball position on record. The Parks Department has not replied to requests for comment either, but Dailey has put together a petition urging the the Parks Department to open the field for the spring and summer. And people say hipsters aren't politically active!
