Scotch Plains Summer Concerts on the Chopping Block This Year

The outdoor stage adjacent to the Scotch Plains Municipal Building may not get as much use this summer due to budget cuts in the Parks and Recreation Department.

During the council's first public budget workshop Wednesday night, township manager Christopher Marion announced that funding for the Cultural Arts Committee's Summer Concert Series will be eliminated this year as part of an effort to pare back department budgets across the board.

"As much as I love the cultural arts concert series, I think it's kind of a luxury that is one of the first things to go," Mayor Nancy Malool said. "Unless we do things on a volunteer or contract basis, it has to take a back seat this year."

Last year, the Cultural Arts Committee scheduled eight weekly shows, each including two performers: a magic or music program for the kids, and a rock, oldies or blues band for the adults. The program often attracted residents of all ages, who would watch the shows in lawn chairs or on blankets spread across Alan M. Augustine Park. The series kicked off last year with the annual summer block party on July 9.

At Wednesday's budget workshop, Recreation Department Director Ray Poerio said that last year those shows, including the summer block party, cost between $16,000 and $17,000.

The Scotch Plains Management Corporation covered $3,000 of that, and sponsors also helped ease the cost to the township. But Poerio said that sponsorship funding has continued to decrease in recent years, and that it's rare to find a business or company these days that's willing to cover the costs of an entire concert.

Councilman Kevin Glover questioned whether larger companies, like TD Bank, would be willing to step up to the plate to help save the program. He went as far as offering to approach them himself to try and make it happen.

"The concert series is important," Glover said. "Maybe we can't have eight concerts, but have four. I would not want to give up on it."

Others suggested finding local bands who are willing to play for the exposure, at little or not cost.

In this tough budget year, the concert series may not be the only summer activity to go.

The STARS Theater program, which offers local youth from kindergarten to high school age the chance to put on a full production, may also be eliminated.

Mayor Malool  said Wednesday that she understood the importance of the program, which is sponsored by the Rec Department and entirely student-run, but that this year it may make more sense to allocate the funds elsewhere.

"As much as those plays are great, if we can appeal to a wider range of people it's a better idea," she said.

Last summer, local youth in the program put on two plays: "The Wizard of Oz" in June and "Fiddler on the Roof" in August.

The mayor suggested this year finding an alternative use for the $1,500 that would benefit a broader segment of the population.

During their budget presentation, Recreation Commission Chairman Robert Giordanella said they recognize that this year is not an easy one for the department or the township as a whole.

"We view the recreation commission as certainly very important to the town; it's the face of the community," he said. "We also understand the times we're in, and we think the budget presented certainly will reflect our understanding of that and will enable us to do a couple of things in the coming year."

The chairman said the goal this year is to utilize sufficient finances to continue to maintain fields and facilities; continue to evaluate the recreation department's Community Pass, which allows many registrations to occur online; and to continue to seek grant opportunities similar to the Union County Kids Count Grant, which led to a funding partnership between the county, Scotch Plains, Fanwood and several local sporting groups.

"This will get us through this year," Giordanella said of the budget. "Hopefully in the coming years we'll have more revenue."