Hoboken Kids May Get More Summer Recreation: 2 Councilmen Press For Programming

HOBOKEN, NJ — It's a question that's long been asked by parents in Hoboken — why doesn't the city run a summer recreation camp, or at least more daytime programs when school is out?

The city hasn't replaced all of the low-cost activities, camp, and swim programs offered by the local YMCA, which closed 15 years ago.

Two council members, one of whom is mulling a run for mayor, sent out a press release Tuesday after being appointed to the city's Parks And Recreation Committee — saying it's time for the city to add more for kids to do on summer days.

"Our goal is to create a program that meets the needs of Hoboken's families while making the best use of the city's resources," said Councilman Paul Presinzano. "We want this to be a collaborative effort between the city, our Public Library, the Hoboken Board of Education, and perhaps even community partners like Stevens Institute of Technology."

"We've had very little to no offerings outside of one to two hours per week in sports," said Councilman Ruben Ramos. "We could be using our facilities, the Board of Ed, partnering with others, and do all this under one umbrella."

The pair said they will soon put together a "Hoboken Summer Recreation and Learning Program."

Two weeks ago, the city told Patch that they will add some arts programs through the Recreation Department this summer, for the first time in many years. READ MORE: 'Boken Promises?

Few Summer Jobs, Unused Talent

"We have all these talented individuals around," Ramos said. "We could hire counselors for the summer. We should connect the dots to offer our families summer programming."

He noted that there are other families like his, who work full-time and don't go far away when the weather gets warmer.

"I don't own a summer home," Ramos said. "We don't go to the beach. My wife works in New York City. We have to fill that gap as best we can, by putting our heads together to see what can happen."

He noted that Communty Lifestyles — a summer program whose application says it's for kids in the Housing Authority buildings — has managed to undertake meaningful programming each summer. The organizers take kids on local trips and to the free pools in Union City, among other activities.

But that camp has had to ask for donations in the past, and the city cut their funding two years ago. Nevertheless, they said at the end of the summer that they had kept 90 kids busy.

More programs would bring even more kids together, Ramos noted. "I think we have to make it a priority," he said. "We may have to drag people kicking and screaming to make this a priority. We can at least create half-day programs, an art program for a couple of hours, go to the library for a couple of hours. Maybe it won't be from 8 to 6 or 8 to 4, but we can definitely figure some things out for this summer."

"Presinzano and Ramos plan to utilize their positions on the Recreation Committee to hear from Hoboken residents about programming needs, study summer recreation activities in other nearby municipalities and push city government to prioritize this critical need," said a release.

Besides sports, the program would include outdoor games, arts, hands-on learning activities like STEM projects, creative writing, and leadership workshops, the release said

"This is about more than just recreation," said Presinzano. "It's about bringing the community together to create something that supports both kids and parents during the summer months."

City's Plans

The city said has said that they will bring back some recently piloted arts programs for kids and teens this summer that debuted this past fall.

The city will not offer swim lessons locally, a city spokesperson told Patch. The public schools offered five hours of lessons per age group in the high school pool last summer.

Secaucus's Recreation Department offers a low-cost "environmental camp" to keep kids busy for a week when they're out of school, letting them explore local wildlife and science centers. Bayonne has offered chess camp, a kids' travel club, and theater camps. Jersey City has a CIT program for teens — as well as low-cost STEM, nature, and arts and fashion weeks.

Outside of organized sports, Hoboken's Recreation Department has offered a three-hour per day cheer camp program in summer, plus Art in the Park for kids under 4.

READ MORE: 'Boken Promises: Will City Add More Summer Recreation This Year?