The Hopewell Basketball Association fights the Hopewell Valley Regional School District's decision to give one of its gyms to the new YMCA volleyball program.
HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP -- For two hours on four weeknights, the "old" gymnasium at Timberlane Middle School becomes the hottest piece of real estate in town.
The Hopewell Basketball Association (HBA), which has rented the gym for 15 years, recently lost the two-hour slot to an upstart volleyball program run by the Hopewell Valley YMCA.
The HVRSD logo. And this has created a "big problem" for the league, HBA president and co-founder Bob Alton said.
The Hopewell Valley Regional School District (HVRSD), which schedules usage at its gyms, said the volleyball program is unique. The YMCA will provide a developmental volleyball program, creating special needs teams. This will also lay the groundwork for the district which plans to start a middle school volleyball team in the near future, the district said.
"We are trying to do what is best for our community," HVRSD Superintendent Thomas Smith said. "Reallocations happen all the time. I don't want to make this about volleyball verses basketball."
It already is, the HBA says.
The contested time slot at the "old gym" is from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. The reason the "old" gym is desirable to the HBA is because its size allows two teams to practice at the same time. This is a matter of the HBA paying $25 for two practices in the Timberlane "old" gym or $50 for two separate gyms, Alton said.
Alton said he pays anywhere from $35K to $40K a year in rentals for the two Timberlane gyms for its Winter Hoops, Spring Hoops, Adult Basketball and Travel Basketball programs. (Timberlane also has a newer gym, which is unaffected by the volleyball program).
The HBA was approved for the 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. time slots for this season prior to the volleyball program being launched, but the school district notified the league just two weeks before the tipoff of their winter season. It was delivered via email, Alton said.
The district has offered the HBA other district gyms - including ones at Hopewell Elementary, Stony Brook Elementary and Bear Tavern Elementary, as well as the new Timberlane gym.
And the HBA will still have time in the old gym on Saturdays.
"Why can't volleyball go to Hopewell Elementary?" Alton said recently, when a few HBA members met with Smith to discuss the relocation issue. "You're taking an established program and telling us to 'get out.'"
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The superintendent agreed to review the gym schedules within the next week, but said the YMCA was placed in Timberlane because eventually a middle school volleyball program is going to be formed and the district has to drill holes for volleyball poles.
If the district installs the poles at an elementary school, only the YMCA would benefit, Smith said.
The HBA previously said they would foot the cost for the poles to be installed at Hopewell Elementary, and offered the district $4,500 to do it.
Alton said without the "old" gym availability, the entire HBA league scheduling will be affected and every team will get bumped around.
Alton also brought up the "lack of communication" between HVRSD and his basketball program during the decision process. He said the district used email again to cancel an earlier meeting the district deemed no longer "necessary."
"The District has decided to support the YMCA initiative to provide a volleyball program to the Valley," HVRSD Business Administrator Robert Colivita wrote in an email to the HBA.
"We are currently finalizing plans for the drilling of the net sleeves and the program will begin immediately thereafter. Marie Pagano (HVRSD secretary) is working on finding alternative space for the Hopewell Valley Basketball program. We regret the inconvenience to the HBA, but we are confident that we can find suitable alternate space," the email said.
"The HVRSD always called HBA partners," Alton said. "After reading that email, HBA felt like this is not how you treat a partner."
Smith apologized for not being more transparent but argued that two weeks notice prior to the season starting is reasonable.
"We will, going forward, improve the process (of communication)," Smith said. "But two weeks notice is acceptable in most situations."
Smith said the decision was based off of many factors such as gym measurement requirements for each sport and was in no way intended to be "malicious."
"They're not losing any space, they're being asked to relocate," Smith said. "They're making this into a personal attack. We always have competing requests for the same space."
Smith said while he has worked with the basketball association for years, he has also worked with the YMCA and its adult volleyball program for many years. He said the new volleyball program will serve 65 children, 53 of which never signed up for any other sport before.
"The Y is providing more opportunities for students," Smith said. "And they're adding a special needs component which is the first one in the area and community."
Lindsay Rittenhouse may be reached at lrittenhouse@njadvancemedia.com. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
