The Hammonton Gazette 092513 | Page 6

Page 6 • Wednesday, September 25, 2013 • The Hammonton Gazette

The Hammonton Gazette
“The Paper of Record”
Gabriel J. donio, Publisher
Gina Rullo, Editor-in-Chief

dan Russoman, Sports Editor
Benny Mendez, Staff Artist

MarySusan?Hoffman, Paul J. Macrie iV
Michael Hozik, donna Brown, Joseph?Bruno,
Lauren Bucci, Lauren Crescenzo,
Brian?Morris, anthony Marella, Staff

The Hammonton Gazette is located at 233 Bellevue ave. To reach a staff
member, call 704-1940 or fax at 704-1938. The mailing address is P.o.?Box
1228, Hammonton, NJ 08037.

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The Hammonton Gazette is published Tuesdays, by The Hammonton Gazette, Inc. Copyright © 2013. All
rights reserved. ISSN?1093-6181

Wine’s impact

There is a growing sentiment that wineries and grape growing are an excellent addition to Hammonton’s agricultural and tourism industries. The
Gazette shares that sentiment, because we have seen the growth of wine in the
last two decades. Wineries have expanded and new wineries have been built.
There are more acres of grapes being grown in Hammonton and southern New
Jersey than in previous years, and it appears the upward trend will continue.
Hammonton must capitalize on this trend if it is to grow as an agricultural
community. Diversification into crops beyond blueberries is crucial; growing
grapes in vineyards here with wineries will help the agricultural industry as a
whole. In addition, the wineries built on those vineyards, with tasting rooms,
shops, tours and other amenities will draw tourists.
The ancillary effect of a booming wine industry in Hammonton will be the
one it has on local restaurants, shops and the real estate market. In California,
the Napa and Sonoma regions have done very well through their connections
to the many wineries in the area. Hammonton is the hub of the Outer Coastal
Plain American Viticultural Area (AVA), the region that the vineyards of
southern New Jersey call home. With solid wines during the next several
years and strong marketing, there is no reason Hammonton — and southern
New Jersey — couldn’t become another region wine lovers from throughout
the nation and the world come to visit.
There will always be doubters and reasons to doubt — the climate, the
downy mildew — but there are more reasons to see the potential for success
for a wine region in southern New Jersey, with Hammonton as its capital. We
look forward to charting the progress as it happens.

Maintain our parks

Our town parks are like emeralds in the crown of Hammonton.
They must be maintained better.
In recent weeks The Gazette has seen a lackluster approach to park maintenance. Grass has gone without mowing. (In one case The Gazette had to contact Mayor Stephen DiDonato to have the grass at the town-owned parking lot
at the intersection of Second and Orchard Streets mowed. It was then quickly
done, and done very well.)
Our parks are a town treasure, but they must be maintained by the
Hammonton Highway Department (under the direction of Public Works
Manager Jerome Barberio) to the highest degree possible within the existing
budget. We agree with the Hammonton Parks and Recreation’s recommendation, made during their meeting of September 17, that the town council start
an “adopt-a-park” program.
Perhaps civic groups could rally together to adopt park areas, raising funds
for them and volunteering to help maintain them. Flowers should be constantly planted in all of our parks, brightening up the town. A sign could be
placed in the respective park areas with the name of the group (or business, or
individual) that donates money, time or both to help make our parks look
good. The Lions Club has helped maintained Leo Park beautifully for years.
Council should immediately look at making weekly checks of the parks a
priority. After all, how our parks are maintained reflects how our town is seen
by both residents and visitors.
At Hammonton Lake Park, there is a lot of work that could be done, from
proper maintenance, to flower planting, to removal of unsightly guard rails.
One thing that shouldn’t be removed are the swingsets near the lake. Instead
of removing the swingsets, an effort should be made to repair and save them.
Those swings have been a part of Hammonton Lake Park for generations.
While we agree with some of the changes and improvements to the park, like
the new playground equipment in the Captain Gerard V. Palma Playground, or
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