Closed on Saturdays

The Lakewood Outdoor Basketball Committee (LOBC), along with Mayor Michael P. Summers, have decided to close the Kauffman Park basketball court on Saturdays. “Due to the high volume of court users we decided it would be best to give one day off for neighborhood relief” states Art Gold, the group’s co-founder. The group will also reduce hours on Sundays with an opening time of 1:30. “If the city had additional locations, there would not be as much pressure on this neighborhood park; this is something we advised the city in our February meeting.”

The court is well used by neighborhood kids. Many of the adolescents playing at Kauffman Park attend Grant Elementary and Harding Middle School. Although Kauffman was not the first choice of location for LOBC, due to its proximity to residents, the group states the location has been a huge success. “Kauffman was intended to be set up as a third or fourth location. For neighborhood adolescents, the court has been very useful,” says Gold. LOBC will soon mount a public relations campaign, which focuses on adding two more court locations for 2012. “The kids are the only ones hurt by not having access to neighborhood parks. We know the mayor will see our vision through.”

Mayor Michael P. Summers agrees—a balance between residential units and parks must exist:

"It is very important Lakewood continues to do all it can as a community to promote healthy activities and wellness. Getting kids off the couch and into our parks with physical activity is important. As a very, very densely populated city, utilizing and resolving conflicts over our limited amount of shared space is a big part of the Lakewood culture. We will continue to work hard to reconcile the needs of our residential community and the needs of activity in our shared space."

In order to reduce noise at the current location, the city will soon put in a sound barrier, as well as, install cameras throughout the park. It is part of an ongoing effort to make Lakewood’s park system more secure.