20 Oct ESSEX COUNTY EXECUTIVE DIVINCENZO ANNOUNCES PLANS TO MODERNIZE BASEBALL FIELD AND CREATE FOOTBALL/SOCCER FIELD IN ESSEX COUNTY IVY HILL PARK
Published on October 20, 2022
Newark, NJ – Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. announced that a project to construct a football/soccer field and modernize a baseball field and two basketball courts in Essex County Ivy Hill Park in Newark was underway. The improvements are part of the County Executive’s ongoing initiative to revitalize the Essex County Parks System and provide residents with the most up-to-date recreation facilities.
“We are pleased to partner with the Ivy Hill Neighborhood Association on this project and get their input on what improvements to the recreation facilities were needed. The synthetic surface on both fields reduces the amount of required maintenance, allows the usage of the fields to be maximized and provides the community with the most up-to-date facilities,” DiVincenzo said.
“This is another environmental justice project being undertaken by the County Executive because we know that recreation saves lives. This is another example of the Joe listening to the community and creating extraordinary opportunities here,” Senate Majority Leader and Deputy Chief of Staff Teresa Ruiz said.
“Hats off to the County Executive for another wonderful project. I commend him for creating beautiful spaces for people to come outside and enjoy,” Commissioner President Wayne Richardson said. “Open space has always been important to the County Executive. Today is another example of the ideas that Joe comes up with to enhance our recreation opportunities,” Commissioner Patricia Sebold said.
“I want to thank Joe DiVincenzo for all the work he has done throughout the years to improve Ivy Hill Park and make if the best for the community. We are very appreciative of the collaboration we have had with the County,” said Houston Stevens, founder of the Ivy Hill Neighborhood Association. “This is an exciting time for the Ivy Hill community. The improvements underway in the park will help us create a vibrant life in our neighborhood,” said Doug Bell, President of the Ivy Hill Neighborhood Association.
“Our children love this park and are excited about what is happening here. It’s good to know that you are improving our community and looking our for our children,” Mount Vernon Elementary School Principal Camille Findley-Browne said.
The football and soccer field with a synthetic grass playing surface will be a new addition to the park. It also will have LED sports lighting for evening games and practices. The baseball field will be updated with a new synthetic grass surface and existing sports lighting will be replaced with LED lighting that are brighter and more efficient. Two existing basketball courts will be resurfaced. New walkways will be constructed from the existing walking paths to the fields, pathways will be repaired, new trees will be planted and landscaping throughout the park will be enhanced.
French and Parrello from Wall was awarded a professional services contract for $264,000 to design the field improvements. Athletic Fields of America from Montville was awarded a publicly bid contract for $3,361,834 to perform the construction work. (Both contracts awarded to French and Parrello and Athletic Fields of America also include improvements to three baseball fields in Essex County Branch Brook Park in Newark.) The Essex County Department of Public Works will monitor the project to ensure delays are avoided. Funding is being provided through the American Recovery Program and the Essex County Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund. It is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2023.
Revitalizing Essex County Ivy Hill Park
The playground was updated with new playground equipment and a rubberized safety surface in 2017. Essex County partnered with Seton Hall University to upgrade the Mike Sheppard, Sr. Softball Field and four tennis courts in 2015. An 18-station fitness course, 53 ornamental light poles and a 300-foot-long paved pathway in the western section of the park were completed in 2014. A second synthetic surface baseball/softball field was installed, two restroom buildings were renovated, and pathways and landscaping were enhanced in 2010. The garden recognizing the four students who were attacked in the Mount Vernon Elementary School playground was dedicated on April 7, 2008. A triangular stone wall – the three sides of the wall symbolizing Terrance Aeriel, Dashon Harvey and Iofemi Hightower who were killed – makes up the center of the garden. On the three outer sides of the garden, trees are planted in groups of three, again to symbolize the three students who lost their lives. A fourth stone wall that is part of the garden is meant to honor the bravery and heroism of Natasha Aeriel, who was seriously wounded during the August 4, 2007 attack. While recovering in the hospital, Natasha Aeriel worked with police to identify the suspects.
The three baseball/softball fields received an extensive overhaul in 2005. One of the fields received a synthetic grass surface, press box, scoreboard and dugout, while the other two fields received new sports fencing. A subsurface drainage system for the entire complex was installed to alleviate flooding. In addition, one existing basketball court near Mount Vernon Place has been replaced with two new basketball courts that are equipped with new lights and players’ benches.
The Essex County Park System was created in 1895 and is the first county park system established in the United States. The Park System consists of more than 6,000 acres and has 23 parks, five reservations, an environmental center, a zoo, Treetop Adventure Course, ice skating rink, roller skating rink, three public golf courses, golf driving range, two miniature golf courses, five off-leash dog facilities, a castle and the Presby Memorial Iris Gardens. Essex County purchased land for Ivy Hill Park in 1927. At 18.96 acres, the park is the seventh smallest in the Essex County Park System.