What should be done with the Wildwood site? (Poll Closed)

Wildwood sight should have a new Recreation Building built on it along
w/ fields and turn the existing Recreation Area at the Human Resources Bldg
over to the Council on Aging. We will soon have equal ratio of students to
seniors. We need additional space to bring in new programs. In our existing
space we are at capacity and have insufficient parking. As for the Rec. dept.
it is time to start charging for the use of the fields like we do w/ the ice palace.
Spring, Summer, Fall and Adult leagues should pay a minimum of a $100/month. The Rec. Commissioners are allowing to many people to use the fields.

Mrs. Covino's comments bring up many points, some which I would like to address.

Please note that the Recreation Commission is asking for the land for fields and a tot-lot only, we do not have any plans at this time for building a structure on the Wildwood site.

I do hope residents will support Recreation at that site on a permanent basis. A short-term "lease" is better than nothing, but remember, it will take two years to develop fields there. Does Burlington want to spend money on fields that may only be used for 3-4 years, and then turned into a cemetery? We will once again be left with a shortage of athletic fields, and the current overuse of existing facilities continues to worsen.

Approximately 2 years ago, Town Meeting FUNDED parking improvements at the Human Services building, which to this day have not been completed. Perhaps, the Selectmen can provide the taxpayers with a time table for completion.

As a Commissioner, I am glad the fields are getting used! That indicates residents of all ages are taking part in various programs offered by the Rec. Dept., and other town boards. Youth groups are not charged, adult groups are charged a user fee. Do taxpayers want to be assessed another fee on top of current taxes for field permits? Probably not.

Burlington residents of ALL ages are fortunate to have all the amenities the town offers. We should not be pitting one group against the other. Perhaps the seniors can utilize the library conference rooms, town hall annex meeting rooms, and the Burlington Museum for some of their programs. These are all accessible by the B-line, and could provide some much-needed relief for space issues. Perhaps local Houses of Worship could help out too, if they have a hall / meeting spaces available.

Lastly, I would just like to comment on something I hear too often. I keep hearing the argument that Recreation does not do a good job on taking care of the fields we have now. This is such an unfair statement for people to make. Our maintenance division works extrememly hard to provide the best they can.

When high-impact sports (soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, football) use the fields, they get torn up. Recreation has asked that groups stay off the fields until April 1st, and also during inclement weather, we ask groups to stay off of them. If this is policy is ignored, fields can be ruined for the entire in ONE practice or game. They can not recover from the abuse.

These days, there is no off-season. Soccer, baseball, and lacrosse play year round. Football and cheerleading start up at the start of August. PE classes can be on the grounds all year, as weather permits. So as you can see, we do the best with scheduling and maintenace we can.

Until we can find additional fields space (we have tried many of the corporate partners in town to no avail), Recreation will continue to provide the best possible playing fields we can, given the limitations of our existing fields and space issues.

The public is always welcome to contact any of the Commissioners to discuss their concerns, as well as the department staff. Our meetings are the 2nd and 4th Mondays of the month in the Recreation Conference Room, 7pm. Thanks you.