Using public parks to provide athletic fields for private school students has been a controversy in NYC for years. Private Schools, especially in NYC, often work in tandem with Public Schools to use and fund athletic fields. In a city such as NY, the availability of large tracts of land for use as athletic facilities is at a premium, so it makes sense to share these resources among the community in both the private and public sectors. This has been a major division point in the construction of new fields on Randall’s Island.
In the latest in the series of events regarding Randall’s Island, the NY Times blog reported:
For the second time in two years, a justice in State Supreme Court has ruled that the Bloomberg administration had improperly struck a deal with 20 private schools to provide them with priority in using athletic fields on Randall’s Island in exchange for $45 million.
A coalition of public school parents and students, community groups and park advocates have argued that the deal between the city and the 20 schools, including Dalton, Buckley and Chapin, essentially turned public parkland into a private domain.
In the decision Tuesday, Justice Marilyn Shafer of State Supreme Court in Manhattan rejected the city’s revised deal with the private schools, saying it, too, was improper because it did not go through a public review. Justice Schafer excoriated the Bloomberg administration, saying its arguments were “audacious,” demonstrating “more daring than logic” She ordered the city to pay the plaintiff’s legal fees and costs.
“It’s a major win,” said Norman Siegel, a lawyer for opponents of the city’s plan. “The city shouldn’t give a priority to people merely because they can pay for the use of public land. That discriminates against those who can’t pay to use the public land. We’re not saying the private schools can’t use the fields, just that everyone should be treated equally when it comes to public land.”
Public-private partnerships, like the one between the sports foundation and the parks department, are often used as one of many possible solutions to pump money into an underfunded budget for city parks. It is hoped that the athletic program fields on Randall’s Island will benefit all the children in NYC.
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