U.F should reconsider extra recreation fees
Mayor Stuart Fierstein Borough Council Allentown
The mayor and Borough Council of Allentown recently received some disturbing news via a letter from a concerned Allentown resident. Sent to the mayor, it revealed that the Allentown/Upper Freehold summer camp had set the fees so that Allentown children are charged an extra $10 to attend the camp. She was bewildered by this action; her son has attended the camp since 2000 and suddenly he was penalized for living in Allentown Borough.

Frankly, we as municipal officials are just as bewildered and further, incensed, by this blatant discrimination. The explanation for the charge is that the township needs the extra money to fund the program. While we can appreciate the financial struggles each municipality is facing, the idea that a $10 extra charge would make the program solvent is hard to believe. If the program has been underfunded, then why not raise the fee for all the attendees? Not only has this governing body never seen the budget for the camp, we were not forewarned that this action was contemplated. How can we provide answers without proper knowledge?

Despite statements made in answer to our questions, the township chief financial officer, Diane Kelly, was quoted in the May 1 edition of the Examiner that most recreational programs are self-supporting. Mayor Alexander also stated that the committee recently passed ordinances to have different recreation fees for those who live in the township and those who live elsewhere. Does this mean that Allentown children will be paying an additional fee for other shared programs as well?

The summer camp has been a long-standing shared tradition in these two communities. Allentown Borough ran the camp for many years, and it was self-funded. It was never the intent that it should turn a profit; its purpose was to provide a service to the children and parents of the two municipalities. Further, the program is held on the school grounds of a regional school district where the school district is funded by taxpayers of both municipalities. When the children attend school, there is no distinction as to where you live; the school serves both municipalities equally.

At a time when the pressure from Trenton is to urge municipalities to share services or be forced to consolidate, it is mystifying why the Township Committee would not seek to enhance a program that could be the poster child for municipal cooperation. Instead, it has chosen to take an action that is deliberately divisive and unfairly punishes those that we always seek to protect - our children. We urge the Upper Freehold Township Committee to reconsider this decision. The amount of $10 is not a great sum, but in the long run, setting a precedent of unequal treatment is harmful to both communities and creates unnecessary resentment.