Dear Editor:
Congratulations to Peter Burmeister of the Bergen Hill Neighborhood Association for successfully fighting to save his community’s precious parkland at Cornelison and Summit Avenues.
His success involved more than effectively organizing residents to defend their neighborhood. His success involved more than seeking the assistance of authoritative bodies like the DEP and the Greenacres administrator to help appeal this matter to the City administration. Mr. Burmeister’s success lay upon “moral right.” It is a “moral right” for Jersey City residents to have a nice park in or near their neighborhood. It is a “moral right” for Nature, plants and trees to flourish once again is this overdeveloped, Nature-denuded urban city. Residents, especially our children, should be able to have within walking distance clean lawns and rich Nature where one can relax, explore and play.
It should have been the City all along who championed this use of this park space. Just as it should have been the City all along championing adequate park space throughout all our neighborhoods, including high density areas such as the Newport area and the upcoming Liberty Harbor area where such adequate planning of park space (and recreational areas and dog runs) is still not set in place.
I call upon City officials to put together a map of all the undeveloped neighborhood areas of Jersey City that either are City property or which could be purchased by the City to become community parks (from smaller pocket parks to larger parks). I also call upon City residents to let your City know about abandoned lots or areas in your neighborhood that you think the City could make into a park. Let’s establish and protect our present and future park inventory once and for all.
It seems that government only works when the good people of our neighborhoods make government do the right thing. Congratulations again to Peter Burmeister for making government do the right thing.
Clifford Waldman, Ph.D.
FVVP Co-Chairman
VVP Construction Advisor