tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14091116.post112723978329519364..comments2023-07-28T07:07:48.002-04:00Comments on The Community Alliance Blog: Parks Is ParksThe Community Alliancehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05874256614338547604noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14091116.post-1127246812580789832005-09-20T16:06:00.000-04:002005-09-20T16:06:00.000-04:00Kudos, indeed, to the Town of Hempstead, not only ...Kudos, indeed, to the Town of Hempstead, not only on the procurement and use of those electric cars, but moreover, on the impeccable manner in which the Town cares for and maintains its parks, beaches and public recreation facilities.<BR/><BR/>We have said for the record, time and time again, that the TOH has the most beautiful, well-managed parks. Indeed, we've implored the Town to take over the operation and control of some of the County's so-called "passive" parks, including the local community parks which, by all reason, should fall under the Town's mandate.<BR/><BR/>We can't - and we won't - fault the Town of Hempstead (or, for that matter, Supervisor Murray) for the County's past failures and present shortcomings. And we will (as we have on an ongoing basis), praise Town Hall for getting the job done and doing it right at the Town's parks and beaches.<BR/><BR/>Should we expect no less - of both Town and County - on the myriad other quality of life concerns that impact upon our hamlets, villages and unincorporated areas? We think not. The time has come to revitalize and re-energize our "downtowns" and "Main Streets" with the same vigor that the Town has (and the County purports to) hit the beaches and parks!The Community Alliancehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05874256614338547604noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14091116.post-1127245504029620052005-09-20T15:45:00.000-04:002005-09-20T15:45:00.000-04:00While on the subject of County parks, allow me to ...While on the subject of County parks, allow me to share an observation I made last Sunday. As I spent the early afternoon at Eisenhower Park with my kids, a couple Parks Dept. personnel drove slowly by (I'm not sure what exactly they were doing - perhaps patrolling or something) in an 8-10 year-old Chevy Suburban. A few minutes later, I noticed a public safety officer patrolling in an 8-10 year-old Jeep Cherokee. Needless to say, both these vehicles get woefully poor gas mileage. Of all available cars, is there really a need for our Parks Dept. workers to be driving around in these gas-guzzling monstrosities? The Chevy Suburban gets an estimated 13 MPG while the Jeep Cherokee gets a measly 15 MPG! After all, I feel the current Exxon-Mobile boycott we're all involved in is worthless when I realize that our county tax money is flowing into the gas tanks of these cars, and by extension, into the pockects of bil oil. <BR/><BR/>The County can certainly take a cue from the TOH who recently applied for and received 77 free electric cars as part of a pilot program on conservation. (see related article http://www.americancityandcounty.com/mag/government_finding_fuel_alternatives/). The vehicles are now deployed throughout the Town Parks Dept, and undoubtedly saving TOH taxpayers a ton of money and all the while helping cut down on pollution. <BR/><BR/>It's nice that Tom Suozzi is soliciting help from the outside by touting a volunteer parks cleanup program, but I'm afraid the real problems with the County parks dept. lies within an evidently broken system - a system that can't even muster the initiative to adopt a win-win strategy all around - for the county, for taxpayers, and for the environment!Jacobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14085599205300856673noreply@blogger.com