The playground at Lafayette Street School in Newark is in bad shape.

One of the basketball rims is old and rusty, the blacktop is uneven in many places, its cracks filled with patches of asphalt. It was so bad in one spot, a construction-style cone was placed there to keep kids away when the surface crumbled and peeled away.

But that’s not the worst of it.

The principal, Maria Merlo, continues a long-standing practice of turning the Ironbound grammar school’s playground into a parking lot for teachers and staff. With the cars there, about 34 of them, students get shortchanged because their play area is cut in half and they can’t stretch out and run as they should for recess and gym outdoors.

It’s been this way for reasons that don’t make sense to parents, who’ve been trying since last year to stop the practice of turning a playground into a parking lot.

"The cars don’t belong there — no ifs, ands or buts," said Madeline Ruiz. "There’s no reason that can satisfy taking away this privilege from children."

You can scratch vandalism off the list. Cars are not getting broken into in this densely populated section of the city where street parking is a problem.

And that apparently is why the principal lets teachers and staff drive onto the playground. Parents said the principal has told them she doesn’t want teachers to be late because it takes time to find parking.

"That’s not our problem," said Maria DaSilva-Pineda, a parent. "The priority should be the kids. We’re talking about the development of children. Playing allows you to socialize. It’s part of learning. It’s a part of education."

What you have now, on any nice day, are kids making the best of a bad situation. DaSilva-Pineda’s kid comes home with scuffed-up knees from the times he’s tripped from cracks in the asphalt. While some kids cool out by the fence chatting, others run around chasing one another, darting between the cars, which is a no-no.

Ada Caro said her daughter, a fourth-grader, leaned up against a car recently and was not allowed to play for the remainder of recess.

"They give more importance to the cars than the kids," she said. "They shouldn’t be penalized for using the playground because cars are there."

These parents are an organized bunch, and they’re not giving up. They want a real playground, a place the school’s 1,100 kids should not have to share with cars. They’ve collected 300 signatures from parents demanding a new playground. A local architect they know drew up some plans, and they’ve talked with officials from the Trust for Public Land, a nonprofit land conservation group that renovated other Newark school playgrounds.

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East Ward Councilman Augusto Amador is in their corner, too. He’s frustrated like the parents. He offered three solutions in November to the principal and the district, and said he hasn’t heard from either since.

Amador said a special zone can be created for teachers. The number of parking permits on the street can be increased for school employees, and a nearby parking garage is willing to offer reduced rates to the school.

"The parents haven’t heard from the board, no action has been taken, and they continue to park their cars on the playground," he said. "I don’t understand why, because the board called me to offer solutions to the problem."

The district didn’t have much to say on the issue, except that it’s aware of the parents’ concerns. Merlo couldn’t be reached for comment, and district officials wouldn’t let her respond to parents’ complaints that she’s not supportive.

Teachers are not talking either. They don’t want to get in trouble.

"The district has been in touch with all parties concerned and we are expecting to resolve this (parking) issue as soon as possible," said Michelle Baldwin, a spokeswoman. "Administrators are working on it and will be in touch with the parents."

The practice of playgrounds being used for parking is not uncommon in Newark. Baldwin said schools allow it because of the shortage of on-street parking. Other schools in the Ironbound have the same problem, but they have huge playgrounds that don’t interfere with students playing.

At this point, Lafayette Street School parents would settle for a simple hopscotch board so the kids can have something to do.

But they can’t even get that.

No one from the administration has gotten back to them on that one, either.

They took it upon themselves and painted one over the weekend to give the kids some hope.

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