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Rutherford pursues Jake’s Law grant for inclusive playground, schedules public design review
Summary
Council members discussed pursuing Jake’s Law funding for an inclusive playground at Tambling Field, opened a resident survey through Jan. 27 and scheduled an engineer presentation and public feedback session for Jan. 21; application deadline noted as mid-February.
Rutherford’s mayor and council on Jan. 13 discussed pursuing Jake’s Law funding to build an inclusive playground, opening a resident survey and scheduling a public design review session.
The council said the borough will seek a competitive grant — described in the meeting as typically between $500,000 and $750,000 — to create play space that goes beyond basic Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility. Council President McGowan said the survey for residents will be open until Jan. 27 at 12 p.m., and an engineer will present proposed play-space types at a public meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 21 at 6 p.m. in the meeting room at the police headquarters.
Why it matters: proponents said the project aims to provide an inclusive, accessible play area for children with a range of disabilities, not only mobility impairments. The council framed the grant as a major, competitive opportunity that would fund a significant upgrade to borough parks if awarded.
Council President McGowan described the borough’s prior work on accessible play: Rutherford repurposed Memorial Field years ago to create the KidSpot accessible play space, and the current effort would add a second major accessible playground at Tambling Field. "This is a substantial grant that we are seeking. It is not a guaranteed grant, and so it is competitive," McGowan said during the meeting.
Members credited the Access for All committee, recreation advisory committee, borough grant writers and volunteers for preparing the application and outreach. The council asked the school superintendent, Mr. Hurley, to forward the survey to school families; McGowan thanked borough staff members Rose and Guante for helping assemble the application materials. The packet of materials assembled for the grant will include community feedback collected through the survey and the Jan. 21 meeting.
Councilwoman Del Rey Cohen asked that the project team coordinate with the Green Team to incorporate sustainable features into any new play-area plans; the Green Team said it can advise on recycling, community gardens and other sustainability elements. Councilman Guzman praised the outreach and asked aloud about the grant deadline; McGowan said the application deadline is in mid-February (referred to in the meeting as around Feb. 15).
No final or binding vote on the grant application was recorded at the Jan. 13 meeting. The council framed the next steps as community outreach and design review ahead of a grant submission. The borough will host the engineer presentation and public comment session Jan. 21 at 6 p.m.; residents who wish to comment were encouraged to attend or complete the survey before Jan. 27 at 12 p.m.
Planning and implementation notes: the council identified the project as dependent on receiving competitive state funding; the borough emphasized grant compliance and community input in design. The borough did not specify all funding sources beyond noting Jake’s Law’s historical use of Green Acres funding and the availability of the statewide program to municipalities.
The council did not adopt any ordinance or resolution related to the playground at this meeting; work described consisted of outreach, planning and preparation for a grant application.
