Updated: Private Meeting 'Upbeat,' But Contentious

Residents who could be affected most directly by the controversial Fields of Dreams proposal attended an invitation-only meeting with Parsippany's mayor Monday at  to discuss their specific concerns regarding the endeavor. 

Not all of these residents were welcomed with open arms, however.

Brooklawn Drive resident Kristen Ritter said the discussion with Mayor James Barberio, which she requested, was intended primarily to allow residents to speak their minds.

She said she asked for the meeting to be restricted only to those who live near the township's high schools, and many residents were invited via a phone call from the mayor's office.

Residents of other neighborhoods and media representatives were not permitted to attend the Town Hall event.

Two residents who live near arrived at the municipal building to find a locked door and and a request to leave.

Robert Crawford and Pat Petaccia, two citizens known for outspoken disagreements with town government on some issues, said the mayor's assistant informed them that they were not allowed to enter.

"We asked her to tell the mayor that we also live in the area and had a legitimate purpose to be there," Crawford said, noting that his residence is right near the PHS football field. He added that another area resident who, like them, did not have an invitation was allowed entry in his and Petaccia's presence.

A moment later, Crawford said Police Chief Anthony DeZenzo emerged from the building.

"He said that he couldn't let us in," said Petaccia, who called the experience "insulting." 

She added that the chief said he didn't know why she and Crawford were being refused entry, noting that he was perfectly polite to them.

Barberio said his goal was not to offend Crawford and Petaccia.

"I wanted to give other residents an opportunity to talk," he told Patch. "I have heard from Mr. Crawford and Pat Petaccia. I wanted to give other residents an opportunity to voice their concerns to me directly."

And ultimately, he changed his mind. 

"About a minute or so" after DeZenzo went back into the building, the mayor said he called Petaccia's cell phone.

She said she noticed the call and heard the mayor's voicemail message upon her return home. She played the message for Patch, which featured a voice that sounded like Barberio's saying, "The door is unlocked. You and Bob can come in."

"I was insulted," Petaccia said. 

"I live here too," the Hawkins Road resident said. "We have people here parking even now when there are games. [On Hawkins and nearby Ball Road], we don't get the 'No Parking' signs that other blocks get.

"This matter involves the whole community, but definitely it concerns the people who live closest to the schools," she continued. "It's good he had the meeting, but everyone who lives near the schools should have been invited. Don't leave people out."

She also said that she doesn't speak out on town issues, as she has done for eight years, to be disruptive.

"I am a concerned citizen and I care about this town," Petaccia insisted, noting that she provides checks and balances not apparent in Parsippany government. "Does the mayor want people to just stay quiet and go along with whatever he wants? I don't think so."

Ritter, who asked for the meeting with the mayor, said she requested that the meeting be restricted so that officials could hear what residents had to say without distraction. She said she was not aware that Crawford and Petaccia had been excluded.

"It felt like such an upbeat meeting," she told Patch, and said she was pleased to be able to lay out her concerns. 

She said the mayor and DeZenzo offered no answers, they merely listened and took notes.

Under the plan, if approved,  to the football fields at  and . These improvements would include the installation of artificial turf fields, modernized lighting, refurbished track ovals and fencing.

Some residents who live closest to the schools have expressed a wide range of concerns over the proposal, regarding issues including environmental concerns, potential noise and property values.

"I was pleased to meet with residents and listen to their concerns and I take all of their concerns to heart," Barberio said. "I will do the best I can to address what I can."

Ritter and her spouse already have regarding their alleged involvement in the planning and promotion of the turf project. 

The Ritters and others say the project should be budgeted and paid for by the Board of Education and they insist the so-called Fields of Dreams plan is nothing more than a "BOE bailout."

Barberio took issue with that description of the proposal.

"This is not a bailout plan," he insisted. "This project is good for the entire community.  It raises no new taxes while achieving what the state has encouraged municipalities and boards of education to do, and that is to consolidate and share services so we can keep taxes low. 

"There is pride that these fields will bring to the community and this is a great project for the town.  Everyone agrees that something needs to be done to upgrade the fields."

While that may be true, there is little agreement regarding how any upgrade should be financed.

Resident Michael Espejo has also been at odds with the mayor over the proposal, which calls for the Board of Education to cede 51 percent of the ownership of the fields to the township so that open space dollars can pay for the work over the next 15 years. He said that while at the meeting, he and Barberio butted heads over the proposal.

The mayor refused to comment on his disagreement with Espejo.

Barberio did add, however, that future meetings regarding the turf field proposal will be open to the public.

The article was updated to include Barberio's official comments. Also, we misunderstood Mrs. Petaccia's statement regarding receiving a phone message from the mayor; she heard his message after she had returned home, not while at Town Hall. Patch regrets the error.