Community Corner

Opinions Still Divided on Red Bank Run Play Restrictions

After two weeks since the letter was sent to residents regarding limitations on how their children played, the neighborhood seems quieter.

Almost two weeks ago, the front yards of Red Bank Run looked very different. Now a very quiet apartment complex, it's hard to find any kids, even as the school year ends and summer kicks off.

However, that is not the way it always was.

Almost a week and a half ago, the parents of Red Bank Run were thrown off when they received a letter from community manager Janet Butto, banning kids from riding skateboards, scooters, and bicycles around their homes.

Find out what's happening in West Deptfordwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Management assured the parents that it was for the kids' own safety and stated that children were still permitted to play in the complex’s playground.

But even after the uproar generated by an ABC news report a week and a half ago, nothing has changed, and some parents are still upset their younger children have been banished to the back playground.

Find out what's happening in West Deptfordwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“It’s been going on for a while,” said Mark Tymusczuk, 19, in regards to the growing amount of complaints about children playing in the complex.   

Tymusczuk said the letter stems from a number of complaints the office has received from local residents. He said he believes the complaints—and the policy as a whole—are unnecessary.   

Tymusczuk said he has lived in Red Bank Run since he was a kid and can remember when the complaints started getting more common. He said that he really saw an increase around 2009, even citing a particular instance when a resident called the cops on children who she believed were being too loud when playing outside.   

In a letter dated June 7 to the residents from the community manager, it states that there is to be no ball playing permitted in the courtyard or near any building, and that children may play only in the open area behind the playground. Furthermore, skateboarding, scooter riding, and rollerblading are banned inside the complex.

The notice goes on to say that bicycle riding is only permitted through parking lots with “extreme caution.”

The notice also claims these policies are put in place only to insure children’s safety and the residents’ safety. In addition, the letter provides additional information on venues for children to play, such as the local YMCA—more than a mile away down Red Bank Avenue, and across busy Route 45.

The leasing office has refused to comment on the policy, and a call to the property’s Fort Washington, PA-based management company wasn’t returned.

Not everyone is upset by the new policy, though.

“I was fine with it, because someone is going to get hurt,” said one resident, who declined to give her name.

She said that the letter has made the community quieter and safer, since kids were in danger of being hit by cars due to riding their bikes or scooters and chasing after balls. In addition, some children were even using parking cylinders as ramps for their skateboards and scooters, she said.   

The woman can still play ball with her grandson only on the front step of her porch, but said she never lets him go into the street. She said that this is more of an issue of parents not monitoring their children while they play, not restricting children’s play.

But others disagree, like another resident, who also declined to be identified, who said the letter is just one in many that has been sent out with restrictions for tenants. She referred to an additional notice that was provided to the residents pertaining to the ban of charcoal grills in the complex, also dated June 7.

“I’m disgusted, I’m ready to move,” she said.   

That resident also referred to another letter dated March 6, in which residents were instructed to keep all lawns clear of toys, furniture, and various other sorts of outdoor equipment. She said the main office has suddenly shifted to enforce a lot of restriction on the residents of the apartments.

She said a change in ownership has turned the complex for the worse, and she said she’s greatly dissatisfied with the new management. She said she plans to move to a new complex when her lease ends.

As far as the policy on kids and how they play, she said it is just another unnecessary restriction. 

“[It’s] not the community’s responsibility. The kids are good, they don’t bother anybody,” the woman said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here