The Parks Department has not acted in the public interest in the case of Harris Field.

If Norwood News reporter Megan Taylor hadn’t stopped by Harris in October and talked with construction workers, who told her that heavy metals were found at the site, we probably still wouldn’t know anything about it.

Two weeks ago, Parks did tell the Croton Facilities Monitoring Committee (CFMC) that a consultant is assessing the problem. In the meantime, Parks will only say the contamination is from “urban fill,” and their legal department told us it will be at least another month before they answer our Freedom of Information Law Request for documents pertaining to the discovery of the metals.

Maybe this isn’t a big problem and the contamination will be easily remediated.

But that’s not the point.

Harris Field is heavily used, particularly by youth baseball leagues that need to plan their seasons months in advance. Last year, Mosholu Montefiore Community Center, which relies heavily on Harris, fielded its teams there but permits were revoked two weeks later to make way for construction. As a result, hundreds of children were unable to participate in the league.

This time, no one told MMCC about the contamination problem, likely throwing their upcoming season into disarray yet again.

At the CFMC meeting, Parks said the fields will be ready by spring, but couldn’t commit to a date.

Parks officials should have picked up the phone and called MMCC when they discovered the problem and its possible effects on the baseball leagues and other programs that use the park.

Also on that list should have been Lehman College and the Bronx High School of Science, whose campuses surround Harris. It’s both common courtesy and a matter of public safety.

The Parks Department should understand this: residents are not as upset with the contaminations and the delays it has caused as they are with the communication blackout and the lack of respect shown the community that this city agency exists to serve.