The Clark Reservoir is gross. Our staff has a wager on how many mattresses and tires (and who knows — maybe even a whole car) will be uncovered when the county does finally decide to dredge it. A water company built the reservoir in 1907, and to the best of our knowledge, it has never been properly cleaned up or cleared out. To be honest, it has barely ever even been maintained.
The silt buildup, especially on the portion of the reservoir closest to Featherbed Lane, is so high that new muck islands have appeared with thick growth. This buildup is causing flooding problems for the surrounding residential neighborhoods, even in years with mild rainfall. Then there is the putrid smell that emanates from it all the time.
The current plans being circulated feel a little “pie in the sky,” but that is the way of Union County — propose the world’s largest, most unnecessary thing, and then be willing to scale it back once the money runs out.
We’re all for cleaning up the reservoir, and we love the idea of adding some new recreation opportunities to the area, but do we really need an ice rink?
Ice rinks – or at least rumors of them — have been popping up across the county like daffodils in the spring for years. First, there was the county’s ill-fated plan to install one at Oak Ridge Park in Clark. Then, officials moved their ambitions to redoing Warinanco in Roselle, and now, we’re hearing that local leaders might be building one at Tamaques Park in Westfield at the same time that the county wants to put another at the reservoir.
Stop it with the ice rink already. First of all, no one wants one in their backyard — just ask the people near Gumbert Park. Second of all, thanks to Westfield’s privatization of Gumbert’s basketball court, we have one public and two private facilities in the county every winter.
The kiddy train ride and carousel at the reservoir also seems a little far-fetched. No one needs an amusement park in their backyard, and this sounds like an expensive thing to run and maintain. It’s likely to be the type of thing that leads to crying children and disappointed parents.
That said, many of the other proposed improvements seem like great ideas.
Every day of decent weather, you can watch Clark residents walk “the loop” around the reservoir. A pedestrian bridge across would make both a safer and a more scenic route. Teenagers would be able to more easily traverse the township on foot or by bike as they go home from school or to sporting fields.
Right now, if you want to go kayaking or canoeing, your only local option is Cranford. Using the reservoir for this purpose would be a great local addition for the outdoorsy folks living among us.
This, coupled with additional walking paths, and a general maintenance and beautification of the area, is a win-win for Clark residents and the county.
Let’s face it, we offer a lot of complaints and gripes about our county government and their spending. But we’re all paying an Open Space tax, and if there is one thing the county does best — it’s parks. This one is a no-brainer — they’re equipped, they have the funds to do it, and it desperately needs to be done.
