Mayor de Blasio green lights Parks
permits for youth sports leagues
BY JESSICA PARKS
Youth sports must go on!
The city will now issue
permits for youth sports
leagues to play in the fall season,
Mayor Bill de Blasio announced
Aug. 28 — a reversal
from hizzoner’s earlier decision
to suspend the program
due to the ongoing coronavirus
pandemic.
“The folks from the sports
leagues that do so much good
with our kids, they’ve been appealing
for the ability to open
up. We’re going to grant that,”
the mayor said on The Brian
Lehrer Show.
The mayor told listeners
that his change of heart was
prompted by an Aug. 24 press
conference at Bay Ridge’s
Shore Road Park at which
a bevy of Brooklyn Council
members and organizers from
local sports leagues called on
the city to let kids play. De Blasio
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also gave a special shout
out to Brooklyn’s Prospect
Park Baseball Association for
leading the charge to get children
back out on the fi eld.
Fall youth sports leagues
for baseball, non-contact lacrosse,
cricket, soccer and fl ag
football can begin playing as
early as Sept. 15, according to
the Parks Department website,
but the department will
not be issuing permits for any
adult organizations currently.
All leagues must complete a
safety checklist before getting
a permit.
Prior to the mayor’s decision
to release permits for
leagues, the city’s sports fi elds
were still open for pick-up
sports, which area politicians
at the Aug. 24 presser argued
is more hazardous than organized
play when joining in
Bay Ridge in a call to release
permits days prior to de Blasio’s
Aug. 28 announcement.
“By allowing group sports
but not issuing permits, City
Hall is sending a message that
pickup games are okay but
organized, permitted, youth
league sports are somehow
not okay. This idea completely
defi es all available logic,”
Councilman Justin Brannan
said.
And though it took a fi ght
with City Hall and uncertainty
fort the city’s families
prior to the sports season, local
politicians hailed the return
of some normalcy to the
lives of the city’s kids as a
win.
“This is a victory for children
and families who were
looking for a safe, healthy
outlet – but it shouldn’t have
taken public pressure to get
it right the fi rst time,” said
State Sen. Andew Gounardes.
“Low-to-moderate risk youth
sports have been allowed by
the State since July, and the
Parks Department’s last-minute
decision not to issue youth
fall sports permits caused undue
stress for families. Still, I
am glad that the kids will be
allowed to play in their fall
leagues. This is a commonsense
decision that will have
a positive impact on equity,
health and safety.”
Kids play soccer at Shore Road Park. Photo by Paul Frangipane
NYCRuns hosts fi rst
post-COVID race
BY BEN VERDE
Hundreds of runners crossed the fi nish
line in Prospect Park on Aug. 28 for
the fi rst offi cial in-person running race
held in New York City since the start of
the coronavirus pandemic.
The contest, organized by NYCRuns,
went off with a litany of virus precautions
in place, such as staggered start
times that saw 50 runners take off at a
time between 7 and 9:30 am, a mask requirement
while running, a medical
screening, and the barring of spectators
from the race’s course — all of which
runners were willing to put up with for
the chance to race in public again.
“Everybody was super positive,” said
NYCRuns founder Steve Lastoe. “It was
a lot of fun actually.”
The race emphasized density reduction,
athlete communication, self-reliance,
and hygiene — using the acronym
DASH, which runners embraced, according
to Lastoe.
“People took it to heart, they listened,”
he said.
Organizers of the 3.3-mile race
dubbed it the “lousy t-shirt” race to emphasize
the bare-bones workings of the
Runners cross the fi nish line. NYCRuns
event — all runners got was a race and
a t-shirt.
While spectators were banned, park
goers in Brooklyn’s backyard who stumbled
across the race offered encouragement
to runners, and organizers said
the event felt like an important chapter
in New York’s recovery.
“People in the park were happy that
something was going on,” said Lastoe. “I
think New York’s a bit hungry for things
to take a couple steps forward.”
Wellness
Dr. James DiGiuseppi DC
8214-13th Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11228