It's less than an acre, but a cinder-covered parking lot in Bellevue Memorial Park in Ross has generated more interest over the years than the park itself.

Now, it's once again the center of attention.

Bellevue council recently considered selling the land based on a recommendation from Bellevue Public Works Manager Tony Barbarino.

The parking lot could be sold because its residential zoning limits its use, said Kathy Coder, president of Bellevue council. She noted, however, that a variance to use the lot as parking for the park might be obtained from Ross.

The motion to sell the lot did not carry, and council sent the matter back to the borough's Parks and Recreation Committee.

"It was just an idea thrown out there," Ms. Coder said. "It's a great piece of property."

Over the years, the parking lot has been the site of friction between residents living near it and Bellevue government officials. For many years, local fire departments used a cinder-block building on the site to set controlled fires for practice. The building was removed years ago, but easy access to the lot made it an attractive spot for drug use and other illegal activities, angering neighbors. As a courtesy to residents, Bellevue firefighters planted a row of evergreens years ago on the edge of the property near the homes.

The mature trees, and the condition of the parking lot, became the focus of a squabble between Ross zoning officers and Bellevue officials.

Ross residents living on McIlrath Avenue, which borders the parking lot, complained about poison ivy and dead trees not being taken care of on the property, and Ross officials had threatened to cite Bellevue if the borough didn't clean up the park. As a result, Bellevue workers cut down all of the 14 mature evergreen trees between the parking lot and McIlrath Avenue, further incensing the Ross neighbors.

This was the second time in recent years that Bellevue leaders have considered selling part of the park. In 2005, they debated selling 10 acres of the park to the Salvation Army for a recreational center, but those plans fell through.

Use of Bellevue Memorial Parkhas declined over the years. The baseball field adjacent to the disputed parking lot once was the site of seemingly continuous baseball league play and the site for the Bellevue Colts youth football league. The hill above the field was the launching site for Bellevue's Fourth of July fireworks, viewed from picnic-blanket seating on the grass below.

But not everyone remembers those activities, said Bellevue Councilwoman Linda Woshner, who doesn't like the idea of selling any part of the park.

"The whole thing is utterly ridiculous -- to sell off part of our park," she said. "It would be very shortsighted."

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