‘FIELD OF SHAME’
Community members say Far Rockaway recreational football fi eld is in dire need of renovation
BY GABRIELE HOLTERMANN
For almost 20 years, the
Rockaway Ravens, an all volunteer
nonprofit youth sports
organization that offers cheerleading,
soccer and football
programs, have been part of the
Far Rockaway community.
Without a single recreational
football field on the peninsula,
its football team had to
shuffle between Far Rockaway
High School and Beach Channel
High School football fields
for practice for years. Then,
with the support of then-Councilman
and current state Senator
James Sanders, the Ravens
petitioned for a field.
And when Rockaway Parks,
a $30 million investment in
recreation areas in Far Rockaway,
opened on Aug. 6, 2012,
the team finally had a gridiron
they could call home.
Located on Beach 32nd and
a mere “Hail Mary” pass away
from the Atlantic Ocean —
with the boardwalk serving
as a divider — the players got
to practice and play against
other teams on their “field of
dreams.”
Only a few months later,
on Oct. 29, 2012, Superstorm
Sandy hit New York City. The
Category 1 hurricane battered
the Rockaways, and a 10-foot
storm surge flooded the peninsula,
demolishing homes and
leaving many residents without
shelter.
Sandy’s wrath also destroyed
the football field.
Dexter Archbold, president
and founder of the Rockaway
Ravens, said the ground was
covered in about three to four
feet of sand after the surge
moved out.
“You couldn’t see the green
top. You couldn’t see the benches
— nothing. Everything was
completely covered,” Archbold
said.A
rchbold said that the New
York City Department of Parks
and Recreation (DPR) did a
great job removing the sand
from the field.
But the saltwater eroded the
shock padding — a layer below
the turf that provides safety
during athletic activities — and
turned the turf, which should
feel like a shag carpet, into a
matted, sandpaper-like flat rug
sitting on concrete.
Even though the synthetic
grass was still under warranty,
the company that had installed
the turf refused to replace it
because they claimed the hurricane
was an “act of nature.”
Archbold said from what he
understands, there was a lot of
back and forth between DPR
and the builder, and that they
went to court.
Almost nine years later,
the field — the only public recreational
football field on the
Peninsula — is still in the same
condition.
Looking at the field and the
players practicing tackles and
blocks, he said, “I don’t know
what the outcome is. But this is
what we have to play with until
better can be done.”
“So, we are talking to anybody
who is willing to listen,”
Archbold said.
He admitted that it would be
bittersweet to find a temporary
home once the field undergoes
a complete renovation, but that
it needs to be done for the safety
of his players and other teams.
Archbold shared that some opposing
teams don’t even want to
play on the Ravens’ home turf
because it isn’t safe and rather
petition the commissioner to
change the location or forfeit a
game.
“I’m tired of kids coming
up with turf burns and scrapes
and marks. The kids are getting
hurt … scrapes to the white
meat,” Archbold said. “They’re
engaging in a tackle. If it’s a
high-speed chase and they
break down, engage and tackle
TIMESLEDGER | Q 10 NS.COM | SEPT. 3 - SEPT. 9, 2021
and with that momentum, they
slide, and any exposed skin is
going to stick to the turf.”
Archbold estimates that the
renovation would take a year
and cost approximately $1.5
million.
In addition to the dangerous
condition of the field, the scoreboard
isn’t working, and one of
the gates can’t be locked properly
because the foundation has
shifted.
“Even the lines — my son
and I painted the lines. We
spent the money, brought the
machine, brought the paint because
you couldn’t see them,”
he said. “No one from Parks
Department is really maintaining
the field. The last conversation
I had, it was blamed on
COVID, that everybody was
indoors and nobody was doing
inspections, and things of that
nature. But this didn’t happen
yesterday. That’s the sad part
about it.”
He had praise for the city
park staff on site, though.
“They do clean up, and I’m
so appreciative,” he said. “They
work hard to try to maintain
and keep the debris and the garbage
off the field.”
QNS asked DPR why the
field has been in this condition
for almost nine years and if the
department had any plans to
renovate the field in the near
future.
“We take pride in maintaining
this heavily used green
space to provide Rockaway
Beach’s young athletes and
families with quality open
space,” a DPR spokesperson
stated. “Beach 32 Field is currently
in good condition, and
we have no plans or funding
in place to renovate the field at
this time.”
The department also said
it would deploy a team to reinspect
the field in the coming
week, but didn’t provide any
information about the lawsuit
Archbold mentioned.
Queens Borough President
Donovan Richards’ office referred
QNS to DPR, but said in
a statement that the Richards
“has always been and still remains
a strong supporter of
the Rockaway Ravens, whom
he has provided funding for in
the past.”
Councilwoman Selvena
Brooks-Powers stopped by for
a tour to see firsthand what
condition the field is in and
listened to Archbold’s and the
coaches’ concerns.
The first-term councilwoman
explained that the
city had already adopted the
budget for the fiscal year
2022. Brooks-Powers, a former
track and field athlete, understood
that the players, who are
between the ages of 8 and 13,
play under less-than-stellar
conditions.
“We do have some postadoption
funds in terms of park
equity money, so I’m going to
talk to the Parks Department to
see what’s possible,” she said.
“It shouldn’t be like that.”
She suggested that they
could also explore a privatepublic
partnership to finance
the new field.
“Or we can get one of the
sports teams that may be willing
to contribute also,” Brooks-
Powers said.
She also promised to reach
out to the DPR and address the
overgrown weeds behind the
bleachers.
“We actually met with the
Department of Sanitation Commissioner
a few weeks ago. We
came right over here, and this
is one of the areas we highlighted
for them,” Brooks-Powers
said.A
rchbold is proud that the
Ravens, who have won a host of
championships and can claim
Jets defensive tackle Folorunso
Fatukasi as one of their own,
are “truly Rockaway” with all
players living in the community
. He explained that the coaches
prepare the players for high
school football, giving them a
shot at a scholarship at a private
high school.
“Then they take those opportunities,
and they go on to
college,” Archbold said.
The Rockaway Ravens players are ready for football practice despite the damaged football field.
Photos by Gabriele Holtermann
Weed is growing along the edge of the football field, while a wire
sticks out from an exposed pipe.
/NS.COM
