Rye Township Community Association

Rye Township vs. Rye Community Park

The non-profit, Rye Township Community Association (RTCA) owns and maintains the Rye Community Park located at 1799 New Valley Road in Rye Township, Perry County. The RTCA has owned the property since 1959. For approximately 30 years, Rye Township leased the property from the RTCA to obtain state grants for park improvements and maintain the park for public use. The property includes a playground, pavilion, meeting building, and ballfield. There was little maintenance done in the last 30 years by Rye Township and in 2023, they stopped mowing most of the property which led to the RTCA ending the lease early. The RTCA had requested items be maintained and made safe, but Rye Township officials refused to complete the work.

The ballfield on the property was built by a local men’s fastpitch team in 1981 prior to the development of the Rye Township municipal property that is located adjacent to the field on property that was donated to Rye Township by the RTCA. That men’s team obtained grants throughout the years, and the ballfield became the premier field in the area. Sadly, the men’s team disbanded in 2012 and in the years after, under the maintenance oversight of Rye Township, the field became dilapidated and unusable. Beginning in Summer 2023, the RTCA volunteers began work to get the ballfield back in shape, by removing the rusted sideline fencing, a hazardous scoreboard and overgrown bleachers, and the two dangerous cement block dugouts, one of which had already collapsed. For the first time in 10 years, a softball team was able to practice on the field multiple times a week. At the end of 2024, the RTCA was able to obtain a grant to replace the unsafe outfield chain-link fence as it was leaning due to trees and shrubs that had grown on and into the fencing. The RTCA provides a safe place for kids and families to enjoy. Rye Township officials decided to take issue with this replacement stating it was “development in the floodplain.” Rye Township officials have insisted the association complete a $15,000 engineering study for a replacement of an item that has existed for over 40 years. We are complying with FEMA, PEMA and DEP regulations, but Rye Township is suing the RTCA for maintenance of the fence. Rye Township took us to the magistrate’s office. Magistrate Gibney encouraged the parties to resolve this issue. The RTCA has reached out but received no response from the Township. Now, Rye Township disagrees with the decision Magistrate Gibney levied in July 2025 and has filed an appeal with the Perry County Court of Common Pleas.

Rye Township chose not to spend taxpayer money to maintain the park and is now spending taxpayer money to make it extremely difficult for the Associations’ volunteers to keep the park open to the public. The RTCA requests that the community voice their support for the park and support our efforts to keep the park open to the public by calling the township office at 717-957-2348, talking to the supervisors, speak at a supervisors meeting or emailing the township office at ryetwp@ptd.net. Below is a listing of the Supervisors and Appointed Officials involved in this action against the RTCA.

Rye Township Supervisors:

Jim Sabo, Chairman

Sean Fedder, Vice-Chairman

Brad Sloop

Appointed Officials:

Michael Pykosh, Solicitor

Gordon Warren, Floodplain Administrator

Daisy Lightner, Secretary

Max Stoner, Zoning Officer

The association does not receive taxpayer dollars but relies solely on grants and community donations. Thank you for your support.

Rebecca Schulze

RTCA President

Park pavilion and building are available to rent for the day!

Click here for more information

We're looking for you...

The RTCA is looking for new members with new ideas. We’re looking for those that are interested in supporting and enhancing the Rye Community Park. Any citizen of the United States or business may become a member of the RTCA. Membership dues are $10 per year and dues go toward the operating expenses at the Rye Community Park. Members may, but are not required to, attend RTCA meetings and may provide comments during the comment periods. Members will be provided with call-in information for meetings via email. There may be portions of meetings that are considered executive in nature and members will be asked to exit the meeting at that time. Members do not have voting privileges at the meetings. Directors are chosen from the group of qualified members of the association. Members may receive a discounted reservation fee for rentals of the pavilion and building at the park. If you’re interested in joining, please email info@ryepark.org or visit our membership page.

Purpose

The Rye Township Community Association (RTCA) is an organization of Rye Township residents focused on encouraging a spirit of volunteerism and involvement in the community who strive to develop love and appreciation of nature, good stewardship of our resources, and a sense of helpfulness and caring among neighbors. The specific objectives and purpose of RTCA is: (a) to provide a place for residents of Rye Township to gather, (b) to promote and protect nature and the RTCA's resources, and (c) to sponsor, host and/or participate in events and activities that promote our community.

Rye Park is located on New Valley Road in Marysville PA, next to the Rye Township building.