The News Journal | by Shane Brennan
A group of Newark residents, led by a former state representative, filed a petition on Feb. 1 to the Attorney General’s Office claiming the city violated the Freedom of Information Act while planning baseball and softball fields at Folk Memorial Park.
The petition is headlined by John Kawalko, who represented Newark in Dover from 2006-2022. He is one of 11 people who signed the petition, which claimed discussions of the sale of that portion of public land should have been held publicly.
“Normally, major capital projects, such as this Park conversion and tree removal, is part of a public process to develop a capital budget. But in this case, the public process was bypassed in total secrecy,” the petition reads.
“If you don’t include people, you are taking a dramatic step in taking away your freedom of speech,” Kowalko said.
The plan was added to the agenda of the Jan. 27, 2025, City Council meeting a few days before the meeting itself. Several Newark residents were upset by the project, and the proposal was taken off the agenda. A public hearing to discuss the project was then scheduled for Feb. 12.
The city denied any FOIA violations.
The plan would remove woods adjacent to Folk Memorial Park in south Newark to place baseball and softball fields for Newark Charter School’s budding athletic program. The school would be responsible for the construction, maintenance and security of the fields, while the city would responsible for the park itself.
Kowalko’s main issue with the plan is that it came together in late 2024 before landing on the meeting agenda, and residents were not aware of talks between the city and the school. He hopes Attorney General Kathy Jennings will rule in the petitioners’ favor before Feb. 12’s meeting and force the process to start over.
“The public would be now included in discussions, and quite frankly if they push the refresh button I would hope the city comes to its common sense,” he said.
Newark City Manager Tom Coleman said to The News Journal in January that the inclusion of any agenda item does not guarantee it will be voted on and that the city had no intention of “sneaking this through.”
“We knew it was going to have to be a public hearing, and we published it as such, and we’ll be happy to work with the neighbors,” Coleman said.