MAHWAH

State investigating Mahwah over parks ban

Tom Nobile
NorthJersey

MAHWAH — The state Attorney General's Office is investigating how the township came to adopt a controversial parks ban, which local law enforcement has said could violate parkgoers' constitutional rights.

People visiting Winter's Park in Mahwah, which township residents have said is being overused by out-of-state visitors.

The Attorney General's Office issued a subpoena on Aug. 4 ordering township officials to turn over documents related to the enactment of the ban, including emails, text messages, meeting transcripts and social media posts.

The Record and NorthJersey.com obtained the subpoena through an open public records request.

Residents have complained of overcrowding at local parks, particularly by Orthodox Jews from New York.

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In June, the Township Council adopted an ordinance banning all non-state residents from Mahwah's parks.

After Police Chief James Batelli raised concerns that the ban might violate the attorney general's profiling guidelines, Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal directed Mahwah police in July not to enforce the ban.

In a letter accompanying the subpoena, Craig Sashihara, the director of the attorney general's Civil Rights Division, said he shared Batelli's and Grewal's concerns.

"In addition to the points they raised, enforcement of such an initiative could potentially implicate the LAD and the New Jersey Civil Rights Act," Sashihara wrote, referring to the state Law Against Discrimination.

The Law Against Discrimination prohibits "discrimination in places of public accommodation — such as public recreational facilities," based on characteristics such as race, religion, and national origin, Sashihara wrote.

A typed message provided by Mahwah Community Parks is seen on a table at Winter's Park.

Mayor Bill Laforet said the township met the state's Aug. 21 deadline to submit all required documents.

“We’re fully cooperating with the attorney general,” Laforet said.

Council President Robert Hermansen said the subpoena has not stopped the council from exploring ways to make the ban more enforceable. The township’s attorney, however, has advised against taking official action until the state issues a response, Hermansen said.

He denied that the ordinance was meant to be discriminatory.

“We had incidents where Mahwah families could not use the parks," Hermansen said. "They asked that we look into a way to put Mahwah residents first."

The council has entertained discussions on limiting large groups at Mahwah parks as far back as this spring, according to emails obtained by The Record and NorthJersey.com. In a May email to the township, one resident claimed that a group of 25 Hasidic girls rode the train to Winter's Park.

In August, local police responded to calls that an Orthodox Jewish resident from New York used a picnic table at Winter's Park to barbecue, causing fire damage.

Concern over eruv grows

Such incidents, coupled with the extension of a Jewish boundary known as an eruv, have caused residents to fear that communities of ultra-Orthodox Jews will try to expand across the state line by buying up real estate. Residents have voiced concerns over a possible population explosion — as seen in Lakewood, an Ocean County community with a large Orthodox Jewish population — that can lead to issues with the school system, high-density housing and overcrowding.

Local fears spiked over the summer when a New York Orthodox group extended an eruv in Rockland County through Mahwah and Upper Saddle River. The religious boundary, marked by white PVC pipes on utility poles, allows Orthodox Jews to push and carry objects outside their homes, activities that are otherwise prohibited on Saturdays under their religion.

The project has engulfed Mahwah and Upper Saddle River in a legal battle over the eruv’s removal. Local leaders argue that it was constructed without consent and violates local zoning laws.

The New York group that put up the eruv argues that it received consent from Orange & Rockland Utilities, which owns the utility poles, and that local officials were aware of the extension.

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The council is expected to adopt two new ordinances Thursday night. One would clamp down on neighborhood soliciting, amid rumors of aggressive solicitation by members of New York’s Orthodox Jewish population. The other would ban nearly 40 new activities in the township’s 10 public parks, including barbecues, climbing trees and playing loud music.

Email: nobile@northjersey.com