SUNDERLAND — With activities picking back up around town, the recreation coordinator recently met with the Select Board to discuss the future of the department.

Jim Ewen, who has served as the recreation coordinator for more than two decades, brought a list of topics the Select Board should be thinking about over the next few months as programs continue to pick up. Among the top priorities, he said, include the maintenance of fields and funding for that work, revitalizing the Recreation Committee and the development of a field use policy for organized groups and leagues.

“We had not a lot going on during 2½ years of COVID and we’re going to get back to having our full array of activities,” Ewen said.

A key point is funding, as money is needed to maintain the fields and keep them in usable shape for use. The need for maintenance may also increase, as the Sunderland Youth Baseball league’s numbers have decreased over the years, meaning fewer volunteers will be around to ensure the league’s equipment, including sheds and dugouts, is well maintained.

“The baseball league, probably at some point in the very near future, I’d say two or three years, will ask the town to the take over the baseball program,” Ewen added. “If we were to maintain the fields and want to maintain the facilities, there’s a cost to that. And it becomes a bigger cost if you don’t maintain it.”

While the Recreation Department is responsible for the fields, Town Administrator Geoff Kravitz said the Select Board is responsible for Riverside Park.

In the town’s operating budget passed at Town Meeting, there is no line item for the Recreation Department; however, $6,000 was approved for maintenance of town fields. Ewen noted there is a revolving account and the department is also responsible for the Memorial Day parade and ceremonies.

To maintain the fields, Select Board Chairman Nathaniel Waring said there “either needs to be funds or man hours to work on the fields” and it may be good to reach out to residents and see what their thoughts are.

“I guess the question is, do we want to expand the park budget?” he said. “Is there appetite in town to pass that and can we make it work money-wise?”

Part of that discussion is also revitalizing the Recreation Committee, which could help Ewen manage some aspects of the department. He said there was some discussion in previous years of setting up an official Parks and Recreation Committee, but it never got off the ground.

“I was unaware it was defunct and if we could repopulate it, that would be great,” Waring said. Fellow Select Board member Dan Murphy and Kravitz both concurred.

Ewen also mentioned the town think about adopting a formal use policy for its fields, which includes proof of insurance so the town isn’t potentially liable for any injuries. He noted Merritt Field is under the supervision of Sunderland Elementary School Principal Ben Barshefsky, while he oversees the field behind the Town Offices.

“There’s been people using the field and we haven’t been good about getting insurance certificates … if its an organized group, then they’re coming and using our facilities and we’re incurring a certain amount of liability,” Ewen said. “To me, it makes some sense we talk about this a little further and come up with something.”

Field use forms and any associated fees would only be used for organized leagues, as residents are allowed to use the park at their leisure.

The Recreation Department does have a field use form that it uses, but Ewen said it would be better if the town adopted an official one.

“I agree, I would not want anyone using the field that isn’t covered by insurance,” Waring said.

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