Shamong farm seeking approvals to host weekend soccer tournaments - Burlington County Times

Shamong farm seeking approvals to host weekend soccer tournaments - Burlington County Times

The over 100-year-old sod farm, also known as Indian Mills Farms LLC, submitted a site plan application to host weekend soccer tournaments in the spring, summer and fall for the next two years as a way to both add to its revenue and market its product. It’s scheduled to be considered by the board Tuesday evening at 7 p.m.

SHAMONG — Hidden in Burlington County between the Jersey Shore and South Jersey’s suburban sprawl is the township of Shamong, a quiet, rural community that may be best-known for the famous chicken wings of the Pic-a-Lilli Inn, one of the few local businesses in town.

But that could soon change. Shamong might soon become synonymous with soccer.

At least it might if Tuckerton Turf Farms gets the greenlight from the town’s Joint Land Use Board to host weekend soccer tournaments on its 168-acre parcel off Stokes Road near Three Bridge Road.

The over 100-year-old sod farm, also known as Indian Mills Farms LLC, submitted a site plan application to host weekend soccer tournaments in the spring, summer and fall for the next two years as a way to both add to its revenue and market its product. It’s scheduled to be considered by the board Tuesday at 7 p.m.

“It’s no different than a lot of farms do with corn mazes and pick-your-own outings,” said Bill Harrison, an attorney representing the firm in its upcoming hearing. “For a sod farm you can’t do a maze or host pick-your-own. This is a way of attracting people to the farm and showing off the crop.”

The model was created less than 20 miles away in Hammonton, Atlantic County, where the Tuckahoe Turf Farms has hosted soccer tournaments on portions of its 800-acre farm for the better part of the last decade.

The tournaments are run by EDP Soccer, an East Brunswick-based company that specializes in organizing youth soccer leagues and tournaments. The company’s events attract elite youth soccer teams from across the country, sometimes even abroad. Most attract thousands of people.

It’s been a successful partnership for both EDP and Tuckahoe. which is why EDP is looking for a second nearby location to supplement Hammonton.

“Part of the issue is there’s been a lot of demand for the turf at Tuckahoe,” Harrison said. “They need to sell the turf and reduce the use (of the fields). The whole purpose is to increase the sale of turf.”

Since EDP needs more soccer space, Tuckahoe suggested they contact Tuckerton, which has operated out of Shamong and Tabernacle since the late 1800s. Unlike Tuckahoe, which sells most of its products for athletic fields, most of Tuckerton’s business has involved sales to homeowners, landscapers and contractors. But it has done some field work and is interested in doing more, their attorney said.

“At Tuckerton, most of the turf goes to landscapers. They don’t really have the size to sell to pro stadiums. But (the owners) want to increase their clients,” Harrison said.

EDP’s soccer tournaments and the thousands of soccer parents, coaches and scouts are expected to provide a built-in marketing tool for the farm. As part of its agreement, EDP will pay an undisclosed fee to the farm for the use of the property and advertise the farm on its website and in tournament promotions.

Harrison said the size of the tournaments in Shamong were expected to be “somewhat smaller” than those in Hammonton but that the setup would be similar in that the events would be limited to weekends between March and November. No weekday practices or games would be permitted and no bleachers or other permanent construction will occur there, save for the development of an unpaved parking lot.

The farm’s application specifies that a maximum of 15 tournaments would be held each year. No more than 20 full-sized fields would be in use or 32 fields if the layout involves a mix of full- and smaller half-sized fields. Vendors and portable toilets will be set up for each event.

The tournaments expected to provide a boost for Tuckerton, as well as restaurants and other small businesses located in Shamong and other nearby towns.

That possibility has Shamong Mayor Michael DiCroce intrigued.

The Republican leader has set a goal of reducing or even eliminating the municipality’s local purpose tax. While most of his attention has been on encouraging cannabis growers to consider setting up operations in Shamong if New Jersey moves forward with legalization, DiCroce said he remains open minded about Tuckerton’s proposal to host youth soccer tournaments.

“Having soccer played in town? I’m not really adverse. I’m always trying to bring new people to town to support our restaurants, so for our businesses I think it will be great,” said the mayor, who does not serve on the land use board.

DiCroce does have some concerns too, mostly involving public safety and traffic impact of having potentially 3,000 more vehicles traveling to and from the farm on tournament weekends.

“Traffic. I think that will be the No. 1 issue,” he said. “There’s a lot of positives as long as people can get in and out without a lot of traffic congestion.”

The proposed site plan for the farm calls for as many as 3,000 parking spaces, though EDP anticipates no more than 1,500 would be needed.

That number has residents like Steven Horovitz worried, both about the traffic and safety.

“There’s going to be people coming and going from outside the area,” Horovitz said last week. “They’re talking 3,000 parking spaces. That’s the Cherry Hill Mall.”

There’s other regulatory hurdles besides the local land use board that must be cleared as well.

Because the farm is located in the Pinelands, a protected region with unique plants and wildlife and pristine water, the farm needs the blessing of the New Jersey Pinelands Commission. And the State Agriculture Development Committee must also OK the activity because the farm is preserved.

Neither of those agencies has given approval, though the Burlington County Agriculture Development Board is believed to have provided an informal ruling that soccer is a permitted use on a preserved farm.

The issue of soccer on preserved farms was controversial when the tournaments first started at Tuckahoe in Hammonton because much of that farm’s land is subject to a deed restriction limiting the land to farming and low-impact recreation.

The Pinelands Commission questioned whether the large tournaments held on the farm met the definition until the conflict was resolved by the New Jersey Legislature, which approved a bill specifying that soccer and other field sports should be considered a low-impact recreational activity on preserved farms in the Pinelands.

Former Gov. Chris Christie signed the measure in 2016.

2020-01-19 11:23:26Z
https://www.burlingtoncountytimes.com/news/20200119/shamong-farm-seeking-approvals-to-host-weekend-soccer-tournaments

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