Freehold Twp. getting set to open Opatut Park fields

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP — The community’s athletes will soon have a new place to play.

Members of the Township Committee announced at the Dec. 19 meeting that Opatut Park, East Freehold Road and Route 79, will have its official opening in July.

The land for the park, 130 acres, 85 of which remain undeveloped, was donated to Freehold Township by the Opatut family. The park has been under construction for several years.

Opatut Park will become the township’s primary recreation center on the east side of the municipality. The park will include practice fields and multi-purpose fields that will accommodate soccer, lacrosse and football, as well as fields for Little League baseball, and softball.

Officials announced that the Freehold Area Pop Warner youth football league, which currently plays at Michael J. Tighe Park, Georgia Road, will soon move to Opatut Park.

Comfort stations, concession stands and playgrounds are also in the works for Opatut Park.

According to Sue McGough, super-intendent of parks and recreation, the opening of Opatut Park will be a huge asset for Freehold Township.

“This is a big thing for us,” said McGough. “Right now, capacity-wise, we’re totally maxed out at Tighe Park. The fields there are used constantly, so this (opening Opatut Park) will give them a chance to rest.”

McGough noted that the opening of Opatut Park will help accommodate the thousands of children who are involved in soccer, and will enable them to play in the fall and spring.

“Recreation will be sponsoring soccer camps for grammar school pupils and high school students,” McGough said, “and it will give organizations a place to practice.”

In other business, a resolution in acceptance of a SHARE (Sharing Available Resources Efficiently) grant was passed at the meeting.

The $35,000 grant was awarded to provide assistance in implementing a Monmouth Public Health Consortium for the sharing of specialized public health services.

To this end, Freehold Township will be able to assist in the hiring of a public health educator to be shared with Freehold Borough, Long Branch, Aber-deen, Colts Neck, Hazlet, Manalapan, Middletown, and the Monmouth County Regional Health Commission.

“It’s a way to spread the wealth,” Assistant Township Administrator Richard Phelan said. “The goal is shared services between municipalities to save tax dollars.”

— Elana Aron