8Jun/0928
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June 8th, 2009 - 20:25
I want outdoor basketball hoops in Lakewood!!!!!!
June 8th, 2009 - 23:25
Not having basketball hoops in Lakewood is an absolute travesty. Basketball should be the most accessible sport to every child regardless of class or status because all you need to play is a ball and -normally- some hoops. By taking away this privilege, we are depriving thousands of Lakewood kids from one of their easiest channels to peers and recreation. In an age where life is becoming increasingly dependent on being online, why take away one of the healthiest social activities that our community has to offer?
June 9th, 2009 - 12:00
I support the efforts being made to return outdoor basketball hoops to Lakewood. Providing public courts would afford Lakewood residents of all ages an opportunity to play and socialize, an outcome that would be extremely positive. I can only hope that these efforts are recognized.
June 9th, 2009 - 16:52
Lakewood’s youth need basketball hoops in the parks. It is far better than having dreary vacant lots with empty backboards from “when times were better”. We need to enrich the lives of Lakewood’s youth by allowing for the diversity of Lakewood to meet and grow in public parks, rather than online in gaming forums.
June 10th, 2009 - 20:55
Look! Lakewood is a great community and it is a shame that the few in power in the community feel that basketball draws the wrong crowd or engages in bad behavior. Basketball is a sport that promotes teamwork and builds friendships and the youth of this city deserve the opportunity to take part. Bring outdoor basketball back to Lakewood.
June 16th, 2009 - 09:03
now if my part of my tax money goes to basketball courts for the criminals in jails, why on earth wouldn’t i support the lakewood youth to have the same luxuries??? come on!!! basketball is one of those sports that can be played by kids of all ages, shapes, sizes, races, and socioeconomic status. all you need is your sneakers, some energy and a ball to share. it helps to facilitate friendships, fun times, excercise and teamwork across the board! please stop being the scaredy cat community that closes everything down in fear of a local fight. if you are in fear of that, why not shut down all the hundreds of bars you all live in between!? with the lack of resources for our children at hand, that is exactly what we will end up promoting in fact. without the physical outlet for these children, we will create a different breed all together. think about your childhood. where would you be without community resources available to you? and we are a much more advanced society now with plenty more to offer. let’s not allow fear to get in the way of our children’s FUN you silly geese!
June 16th, 2009 - 20:54
Jordan, Nadahl, and everyone else in support of this cause:
keep up the good work. basketball courts are a necessity in the development of youth. not only is it a prime location for peers and social networking, but it’s also a means by which we can promote health and physical fitness. if im not mistaken, america is considered one of the, if not, THE fattest nation in the world. how do we expect to improve our image and promote a healthy lifestyle if all of our means to improve are simply removed or neglected. for the last year ive lived in a country where but few people are over weight, everyone lives an active lifestyle, and basketball courts are literally sprouting up in neighborhoods everyday. drug use and crime are far less worried about because people have access to alternative methods of entertainment. also, if im not mistaken, the city of lakewood is currently in the process of expanding their police force. if crime and drugs are a defending argument against reinstalling basketball courts in the city, why not utilize the expanding force and patrol neighboroods surrounding the new basketball courts more frequently. this is called preventative law enforcement, and its a successful method used most often by departments across the country. there are many valid reasons to support the installation of basketball courts throughout the city and there are few valid reasons to argue against them. therefore there is no reason why this should be a standing issue. bring basketball courts back into lakewood.
June 17th, 2009 - 15:51
I support hoops in Lakewood
June 17th, 2009 - 16:17
The skateboarders got a skate park that displaced the basketball players in Lakewood park. Baseball/softball players have diamonds. Football players have various empty lots to use. Drinkers have bars. Believers have churches. What are all these basketball enthusiasts supposed to do? Competitive sports unite people through the love of the game and the celebration of the human spirit. Imagine if Lebron didn’t have a court to play and compete on during his youth. That would mean a lot less money being funneled into the greater Cleveland area. This is just one more freedom that has been stolen by the oppressors. This is a war in Babylon that must be fought. It starts with the destruction of basketball courts. Who knows what will taken from the people decades from now. This is not the vision of America that our forefathers imagined. This is one of the most popular American sports! Are the citizens of Lakewood going to start nailing milk crates to telephone poles and just start shooting hoops into those? Well that would not even be a hoop at all, being that a hoop is round in shape. That would be a disgrace to the game. I guess they will just have to find other games to play which could actually increase crime, because the games might be illegal. It is common sense. They rebuilt all those schools with how many tax dollars? At least throw one court down on the concrete. I support this movement Jordan!
June 17th, 2009 - 17:10
Please bring back basketball hoops to the city of Lakewood.
June 17th, 2009 - 18:36
These are all great comments. It’s refreshing to read how Lakewood residents feel on this issue.
Lakewood is an ideal environment to host basketball. Most of us already know it is a unique suburb where many people get around by walking. How many other suburbs can boast basketball courts within walking distance? Perhaps a few have parks with streets near by, but most you have to drive to. I can’t imagine another place in Cleveland where more people could utilize a place to play.
Lakewood is a central location for many cultural views. What better way to integrate them by hosting a universal sport? It is a creative outlet for many young kids (and adults) that helps them focus on team work, work ethic, health, and other countless positive experiences. Bringing basketball back to Lakewood would generate long term benefits for the area.
June 17th, 2009 - 20:26
I agree that we need more for young people to do in the city. Tweens, teens, and young adults are not getting outside for enough hours of the day. Even as a preschool teacher, I can already see how video games, TV & movies, and computers are taking the place of outdoor physical activity and face-to-face social interaction. We need to encourage young people to take part in as much outdoor activity as possible. Bringing back hoops would be a great incentive to get moving!
June 17th, 2009 - 20:50
Who in their right might would not support children, teens, adults having access to basketball hoops. Bring hoops back to Lakewood.
June 17th, 2009 - 21:00
Get kids off the couch, away from video games and out doing more physical activities. Bring Basketball hoops back to Lakewood!!
June 17th, 2009 - 23:33
Lakewood needs basketball courts for the kids!!!!!
June 18th, 2009 - 08:38
Basketball hoops are one of the most important aspects of so many people’s childhoods. Friends are made, skills are acquired, and life lessons are learned. Every city needs some courts of every sport to keep the kids out of the places where mistakes are made. I’d much rather see a group of kids choosing to play a game of basketball then hang out in an alley or anywhere else away from the supervision of the public. Bring Hoops back to Lakewood, because they never should have been taken away!
June 18th, 2009 - 12:20
Bring those hoops back to Lakewood
June 18th, 2009 - 22:33
We are parents of two children in Lakewood and have grown up here all our lives. We feel it is very sad that the only way to protect our community is by taking away the ability for our children to practice and exercise. Our children are 3 and 1, We hope we can figure it out before they really need access to hoops.
June 19th, 2009 - 15:55
Bring back the hoops! I support the cause to bring outdoor basketball hoops to the city of Lakewood. I grew up minutes away from an outdoor court on the corner of Madison and Woodward and went there often as a kid.
June 25th, 2009 - 11:47
Give the kids their basketball hoops!! Give them a reason to go outside and play instead of staying inside playing video games!
June 25th, 2009 - 12:20
I DEFINITELY support bringing the hoops back to Lakewood. It gives the youth something constructive to do, and encourages exercise. This way they can spend their time running for the ball and not from the police
June 26th, 2009 - 15:05
This is unheard of..With so many kids stuck on video games, and staying indoors. Why give them another reason to stay unfit. Please put hoops back up in Lakewood
June 30th, 2009 - 10:23
I totally agree with you daddymax. Who’s idea was it to get rid of the hoops anyway? and What was their reason? Where I grew up, hoops was something all the neighborhood kids could do. And nobody got into trouble. Please bring the hoops back to Lakewood.
July 15th, 2009 - 22:58
I definitely support the effort to bring hoops back to Lakewood. Living on Wagar, I was very sad to see the basketball courts go, when they tore down Madison Elementary. Not that my own children were old enough to use them at the time, but I liked the idea of having a lit, police monitored (every so often), place for kids (and adults) to go and play basketball. I would love to see the outdoor hoops return to Lakewood. Good luck and I am hoping for your success!
July 22nd, 2009 - 14:08
To take away the hoops from our youth is sad. Not only are the hoops gone, but so are opportunities for the development of friendships, teamwork, healthy exercise and skill for the sport that so many of us grew to love. The increasng amount of pull away hoops that I see on the streets is only putting our youth in a more dangerous situation than if they were on the courts somewhere in Lakewood. What are the youth to do when they want to develop their game? Go to Cleveland? Westlake? Bay Village? How will they get there? Can they all go? I dont think so. The future pride of Lakewood basketball has limited access for the development of their skills, you think their competition will only be playing during school months? Well you are wrong if you do. If our teams are to be competative once again, they will only need a public HOOP to begin.
July 22nd, 2009 - 16:28
Growing up, basketball is something that my friends and I did, from afterschool until dark, as long as the pavement was dry or free of snow and ice. Actually throwing a ball into the hoop, running around, and learning how to play as a team is something video games cannot emulate. Even as a 30-year old, I used to shoot hoops at the public hoops.
When there are gatherings of kids and teens, there are security issues, but there are better ways to handle that than removing hoops. Why punish the many for the shortcomings of the few?
February 14th, 2010 - 14:42
Putting hoops back up in lakewood would finally give kids a chance to do something other than play video games. Often at school i hear “hey dude get on Xbox live after school,” with hoops kids would be excited that they had an option to actrually play basketball instead of jsut playing basketball on a game system. The skate park was a big hit, so why wouldnt hoops? Not everyone can afford to go play at the Y and if you can’t go there you’re limited to your own back yard with no one to play with or the 12 minutes you get in gym class Put the hoops back up and all will be well.
December 14th, 2010 - 17:57
I moved from Lakewood about a year and a half ago. (New Job hundreds of miles away–miss it dearly)
You people forget (or quite possibly, don’t care) why hoops were taken down in Lakewood–you can all be dismissive of these comments but be forewarned. The City of Cleveland took down their hoops–stone cold fact. Their hoops are still down. Cleveland’s neglectful parents’ children WILL come an play hoops–all day, all night, until the police tell them to go home. And the police don’t like this part of their job, so attitude will arise on the dispatcher end of any call after you call a few times. The funny thing is that Lakewood’s neglectful parents’ children will do the same thing. So Lakewood and Cleveland combined–you will have plenty of miscreants to deal with.
I lived across from Roosevelt School on Bayes Avenue in Lakewood for nine years. The first three years were relative hell. A basketball court was/is attached to Roosevelt School. At least three nights a week during peak season (May/June/July), usually) I would have to call Lakewood police (never until after 11pm) to have loud, obnoxious kids/young adults shooed away. I tried the polite reasoning for awhile, until one of the kids challenged me to a fight. And yes, a basketball bouncing on the pavement and caroming of a tin backboard is loud and obnoxious, especially when you have small children or would like to get to sleep yourself at a reasonable hour. Drug dealing took place–many of us witnessed it–you can ask Lakewood Police for verification of this. At the height of the summer basketball season, crowded courts are a young drug dealer’s dream–with both Lakewood and Cleveland kids buying. Many neighbors and myself lobbied the Mayor, the School Board, and our councilman (Bob Seelie at the time) to remedy the situation. First, signs stating that the courts were closed at 10 pm went up. Didn’t work one bit. So, on several occassions, we would call school board members, the mayor and Mr. Seelie right after we would call the police when Lakewood’s and Cleveland’s lovely children refused to vacate the courts at the posted time–just to give them a heads up that their policy was not working. The hoops came down soon thereafter. But it took three years.
So, you can talk about obesity and what not, but unless you live(d) across from one of these basketball courts, you have no idea what had gone on and will go on. The naivete of this organization is unbelievable. Put a hoop up over your garage so your neighbor can hold YOU personally responsible for the noise of Lakewood’s kids after 11pm. or just give your kid a jump rope.