Environmental Impact Of Mendhams Mosle Field Project Studied

MENDHAM, NJ — Mendham Township will host an open forum for the community to ask questions about the recently completed Mosle Environmental Impact Study.

Despite the fact that the Mendham Township Committee approved a resolution to add lights to Mosle Field on May 22, several committee members stated that they were waiting for the environmental impact study before making final decisions.

The forum is planned for Monday, June 26, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. before the Regular Township Committee at Mendham Township Elementary School.

The township committee will hold a public meeting to answer questions about the recently completed Environmental Impact Study for the proposed Mosle Recreation Area Lighting Improvement Project.

Residents will be able to submit their questions ahead of time using this form.

The Mosle Athletic Field project has been significantly scaled back since the initial proposal and now includes the installation of permanent LED light poles around the parking lot and Mosle Field to improve the site’s usability and safety.

The Committee specifically proposes to install six new 25-foot-tall, downstream, permanent LED light poles around the parking lot to eliminate any safety concerns related to the parking lot’s current low-light or dark conditions.

Additionally, four new 70-foot-tall, downstream-facing, permanent LED light poles will be installed around Mosle Field to replace the existing portable diesel-powered HID light towers.

Residents have expressed concerns about the project proposal in recent months, ranging from potential negative environmental impacts to increased traffic and the lighting implications for residents who live near the fields.

According to the environmental impact study, the proposed LED light poles have the potential to benefit bats, including the federally endangered northern long-eared bat and Indiana bat, as well as the proposed federally endangered tricolor bat.

The proposed project also has the potential to increase the habitat range of light-averse species and facilitate a more even distribution of insects throughout the entire community.

“Further, no adverse impacts are anticipated to general wildlife as a result of the proposed project,” Emily Bjorhus, the project manager and environmental scientist for the study, said. “Although no adverse impacts are anticipated, the proposed project would result in minor, positive impacts to the local wildlife community.”

In response to the public’s worries about more traffic in the area, Mayor Nick Monaghan and other committee members said they did not understand why traffic levels would increase with the installation of lights.

Monaghan argued that the same group of people who have been attending the fields for practice and games for the past several years will continue to do so.

Locals who support the lights have spoken out about the dangers of not having adequate lighting in and around the field.

“One night, we sent my father-in-law to pick my sons up, and the first thing he said to me was, ‘A kid is going to get hit at this place.’ It’s way too dark. It’s very dangerous, and anywhere else where we would have children, cars and darkness, it would have been addressed and handled immediately,” Dennis Tupper said.

Mosle Field is currently used by the Twin Boro Bears football and cheerleading program and the Mendham Chester Patriots baseball and softball program, which both serve over 500 youth athletes.