From Greg Remaud of NY/NJ Baykeeper -- (April 16, 2002)Friends and Colleagues,
It is a long overdue Day of Reckoning for the notoriously misguided Liberty State Park Development Corporation. Last week, NJDEP Commissioner Bradley Campbell notified the Development Corporation that he found them to be in default of their contract with the State. After reviewing financial records the State found mismanagement and the consistent underpayment of parking fees that shortchanged the taxpayer and the Park.
During the last two years the Development Corp has cheated the public of $833,328 in lease revenues alone. This shadowy entity and Chairman, Peter Ylvisaker, were given 60 days (until June 2nd) to show why their contract is not in default and should not be terminated. Rather than simply revealing and explaining their financial records and proclaimed accomplishments, the Development Corp, which siphons off $140,000 per year in salaries from the public, has hired expensive attorneys and lobbyists to fight on their behalf.
Who is paying these costly professional fees? Are citizen tax dollars paying to defend an entity that can't even manage parking lots and is scamming the public? Is a private interest that stands to gain from sweetheart lease arrangements and special treatment like the marina paying the tab? The Development Corp has not revealed this information. The public deserves and demands an answer!
Together, over the years, citizens, led by legendary public activists Morris Pesin, his son Sam, and Audrey Zapp, conservation organizations, community groups, and leaders in the press have challenged the Development Corp's misdeeds and fanatical commercial vision time and again. We have constantly wasted time and resources fending off a litany of large-scale, high-fee commercial schemes like golf courses, commercial water parks, large commercial amphitheaters, large commercial concert series that the Development Corp has tried to foist on the Park.
Beneficial amenities that are in keeping with the type and scale of the Pa rk's mission as a free, green, natural urban oasis for all people have had to take a back seat to these schemes. Playgrounds, unstructured recreational fields, shade tree groves for picnicking, a concert-in the-park style band shell, and critically important pedestrian access ways from local communities into and around the park are lacking or were delayed due to Development Corp political influence and control of public funds.
It makes no sense to continually fight with the Development Corp. It is an entity that, originally charged to forward public improvements on some of our country's most sacred parkland behind the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, chose instead to become a parasitic fiefdom beholden to commercial interests. Overzealous commercialism is an unfortunate reality in too many places, but we will never allow it at Liberty Park. The Day of Reckoning is here for the Development Corp, let's have a final accounting, a final judgment, and be done with the scoundrels!
Despite setbacks, there is truly a bright new day at Liberty Park that the public can be proud of. We have all stood together and defeated harmful development plans, and are now for the first time moving forth with conservation plans for the Park in close cooperation with NJDEP Parks and Forestry and elected officials. One of the nation's grandest natural restorations ever is slated for the interior 251 acres of the Park; the marvelous Liberty Science Center is expanding and helping to comprehensively connect park features; and most importantly, the many small amenities that make the park a user-friendly experience for everyone are progressing.
The Liberty State Park Conservancy, Friends of Liberty State Park and citizens in Hudson County and across New Jersey strongly support the actions of Governor McGreevey and Commissioner Campbell on behalf of the public and applaud their leadership in moving to terminate the existing lease agreements with the Development Corp.
Here is how you can do to help:
1) Write Governor McGreevey to thank him for his stance on behalf of the park and public and ask him to stand up to the lobbyists who will be pressuring him to back off the termination of the Development Corporation's lease or looking for a soft compromise.
Governor James E. McGreevey's address is P.O. Box 001 Trenton, NJ 08625
2) Express your opinion in your local papers or your media outlet of choice. If you can, please forward a copy to Sam Pesin or me, Greg Remaud. Friends of Liberty State Park PO box 3407 Jersey City, NJ 07302. Attached is a sample letter.
3) Join The Friends of Liberty State Park, the Liberty State Park Conservancy and our many friends from around the State at our May 11th Rally at the Central Railroad Terminal Plaza a the bottom of Zapp Drive in Liberty State Park. The Rally is supporting the Governor's protection of the Park and taxpayer and calling for the abolition of the Liberty State Park Development Corporation. Feel free to talk to Sam Pesin, or call me at 732-291-0176 as the event nears.
4) Join the fantastic Liberty Park Interpretive Center staff, the Conservancy and the Friends on Saturday April 20 for our 3rd Annual Earth Day Festival to relax and celebrate Liberty Park and the great outdoors. Its free to all, held at the Nature Interpretive Center on Freedom Way and runs from 11am to 5pm. The LSP Interpretive Center phone # is 201-915-3409. There will be live hawk flights (late in the day), face painting, interactive nature craft tables, tanks with live reptiles, environmental storytelling, music, food, nature walks, conservation demonstration tables and lots of fun. One special feature is that the Park Rangers will be on hand for a child safety finger printing and identification program. If you have not already undertaken this program, please take advantage of this important and free opportunity.
Additional info is forthcoming at our website:
www.libertystateparkconservancy.comTime saving warning! Are you at all like me? Do you continue selling the car long after it's been bought? Anyway if you've heard enough, good for you and don't bother with the additional info, there are better ways to spend your time. If you enjoy what I call elaboration and my friends call painstaking overkill, this next page is for you.
Unfortunately, the $833,328 loss of the parking revenues, as large as it is, pales in comparison to other public losses associated with the Development Corporation.
1) Although difficult to estimate, the opportunity costs of delayed, lost and wasted time and funds may be the Development Corps. greatest injury to the Park. In addition to the projects mentioned above, consider the following.
Think of important projects that have languished: The refurbishment of the magnificent Central Railroad Terminal. The main terminal is just now having a heating system installed, a decade after the Development Corp offices upstairs were amply heated and restored. The terminal was used for post September 11 emergency services and special heating systems had to be rigged because of this delay.
The historic railroad shed that sent our immigrant ancestors throughout the land is still in structural disrepair. This historic structure also provides vast cover that could provide enormous opportunities for special indoor cultural and historic events.
Consider all the funding that did not come into the park because of contention and lack of a plan that represented a true public vision. First, the best projects by the Development Corp. were not forwarded and secondly, what corporate sponsor or foundation would or should fund projects that lack clarity and are set in a contentious atmosphere.
2) Time, money and frustration has been wasted supporting or having to monitor misbehavior on the part of the Development Corp and marina operators. For instance together they operated unauthorized commuter services on multiple occasions.
3) Exploiting emergency commuter services post September 11th. Perhaps most telling of the Development Corporation disregard for the Park and public good is the awful experience encountered after that tragic day. The park and park advocates are on record as supporting emergency commuter services ñ buses to the ferry - out of Liberty Park. Although Liberty and other parks are not normally permitted to operate commuter services, everyone recognized the national emergency and the need to get commuters safely into the city when other options like the tunnels were restricted.
Our only request was that the services operate only until the emergency was over and that the large financial windfall associated with these extra services be used for the victims' families or go for park improvements (especially since the park and its staff played such a tremendous role in post 9-11 activities, from daily counseling and emergency services to the State memorial service).
NJDOT the authority that created special bus parking at Liberty complied with these requests responsibly and respectfully ñ leaving when the crisis was over and careful to reimburse the park for its impact. However, The Development Corporation and marina operators continue to run commuter services long after the crisis was and have kept the money for themselves!
4) Public access denied. The Development Corp has neglected the conditions of its lease agreement and past administrations allowed this to persist despite outcry from park advocates and the public. One clear instance is that a public walkway was to be created along the historic Morris Canal where the marina is. It states clearly in the lease agreement that this walkway has to be created before a restaurant could be built on the 80-acre site leased to the marina. As the restaurant was constructed, advocates complained about the incomplete walkway to the Whitman Administration, but to no avail. There is a restaurant, fine, but there is no public walkway ñ not fine. Furthermore, security guards constantly chase the public off areas along the canal that are supposed to remain open to the public. This and other similar behavior begs additional questions about a marina that clearly caters to the wealthy, rather that the park going public.
There's plenty more. But, you get the picture that this is about much more than uncollected parking revenues; it's about bad actors and their public comeuppance.
Greg Remaud
NY/NJ Baykeeper
greg_keeper@netlabs.net==================
Sample letter
Date
Governor James E. McGreevey
PO Box 01
State House
Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0001Dear Governor McGreevey:
I am writing to thank you for your leadership in protecting the open space and natural resources at Liberty State Park and saving New Jersey taxpayer money by terminating the State's lease with the Liberty State Park Development Corporations.
Liberty Park was created as a natural, cultural and historic oasis for all people to enjoy freely. The Development Corp has repeatedly ignored the will of the public and continually pushes for unwanted large commercial projects, while delaying appropriate park amenities. Thousands of citizens have testified in favor of an open natural setting at Liberty and we are tired of having to fight this battle again and again.
Moreover, the Development Corp has cheated the public of over $800,000 of parking revenue during the past two years. This breach of public trust is shameful at anytime, but particularly during our current budget crisis. The Development Corp mission and behavior is simply wrong for Liberty State Park. We urge you give control of the park back to the public and abolish the Development Corporation. Thank you again for your leadership in this direction.
Sincerely,
Your Name
(Remember this is just a sample letter and personal thoughts or direct experiences are always best. They can be included with or substituted for the above text.)
