By Brandon T. Bisceglia
The Orange Board of Selectmen unanimously approved a plan by an Eagle Scout from Woodbridge to build a small pavilion at Fred Wolfe Park to give children and families shelter from the elements.
Simon Khairallah, a sophomore at Amity High School, pitched his pavilion concept to the board at its April 3 meeting.
“If you’re wondering why a Boy Scout from Woodbridge is coming to do a project in Orange, I grew up in the Orange soccer program. I played there since I was 8 years old,” he said. “I referee there. So when I was considering a project, I really thought that a good way to give back would be to really help out Orange soccer in whatever way I could.”
The Orange Soccer Association has agreed to fund Khairallah’s project, which he said he’s hoping to begin in late April and finish by the end of May. Construction would be staggered around scheduled practices and games in the park to avoid interfering with the players.
Woodbridge student Simon Khairallah won unanimous approval April 3 from the Orange Board of Selectmen to build a pavilion at Fred Wolfe Park for his Eagle Scout project. Image courtesy of Orange Government Access Television.
The pavilion would use a prefabricated design of cedar and aluminum sitting on a floating cement slab, with several inches of gravel underneath. The floor of the pavilion would be flush with the soil to prevent erosion. It would be 16 feet on each side, but the roof would be smaller than the cement floor, eliminating the need for gutters.
Tom Pisano, co-president of the Orange Soccer Association, spoke in favor of Khairallah’s proposal, noting that having a shelter at the park is a matter of safety for the children.
“We were there once at night. A fog kind of rolled in, and I said, ‘I just can’t have this,’” Pisano said. “We had little boys and girls in a shed, and the coaches outside with umbrellas. With today’s concern about safety for the kids, this is a great idea.”
Pisano said they would also try to add a lightning rod at the top of the pavilion. He added that every effort was made in the design to make the project maintenance-free for the town.
Selectman Mitch Goldblatt lauded the project. “Many of us have been to those fields, and it would be nice to have a little shelter somewhere,” he said.
First Selectman Jim Zeoli commended Khairallah for being proactive in his Eagle Scout duties, joking that most of their proposals come “at the eleventh hour, when they’re headed to college, and they’re trying to get something done before they have to leave the scouting.”