PRECM 04-07-1982 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Support reg~ona Lak ~ lake. Usually we can only stay a short ~ while because of the l ck of shade tr .ong e or a ees. ' ' lternative l is is The proposed development and operating lans for a re ional beach a ear t be ; a t rea g pp p o a s considerable improvement over what `~ To the Editor: ~ New Brighton alone can offer. I read with great interest Mrs..Mary ~ when it becomes too hot and noisy at;. Ann Polzak's arguments against ~ 4 the .beach, we pack our boys on the bike development of a regional Long Lake .seats and pedal across the freeway to Park. Her letter essentially summed up ~ Hansen Park. The cars getting on and off the points made by other members of the the freeway don't always look for Long Lake Improvement Association at } bicyclists, so we try to be very careful the recent informational meeting on ~ when we cross the bridge. As I read w t c~ ge t g l ith severall of he r~ticisms leveled by ! ~ bicycl rails, I lo oked forward to a scenic :. Mrs. Polzak and other lake homeowgers. and safe family ride around the lake. Can However I am concerned that when the ~ New Brighton afford to build and main- .. dE^st settles we will be left with what we ~ fain such a trail system without help from "enjoy" now - an undeveloped, unused ~ the "'county? City officials say not, piece of land that provides a beautiful ; although I haven't seen the figures that view for a very tiny percentage of the prove this. residents of New Brighton. t As one of the organizers for last year's Someday, I hope to enjoy the scenery. ` Stoci~yard Days, I spent many hours from the vantage point of a lake home. , tramping around the "delicate natural But for now my wife and two pre-school setting" on Long Lake's. eastern shore. boys must settle for a bike ride down Long ;The only wildlife I encountered were Lake Road to the city beach. Squeezed i thousands of mosquitos, many of which along a narrow strip of land oNy a few. ~ carry `encephalitis, according to a ` yards away from the rumbling traffic oq~ ~ Metropolitan mosquito control map. I ~: 694, we can `passively' enjoy the roar of~ didn't wander too far into the underbrush -, power boats buzzing `around the narrow for fear of falling into one of the many pits ;' and junk piles left over from years of ; Continued on page 5 :~ ~ environmental .abuse. On my walks I ' collected dozens of beer cans left by the • ;,~ ~ people who normally take advantage of ' the wilderness -the snowmobilers and . ~ ~ motorcyclists that habitually trespass on ' :.the site. The Master Plan does propose to cover` • i ~' `~ over a small portion of this beautiful '• • •?• • ground. But overall I believe that the °' ` removal of debris and tar, the restoration • y x , ` of scarred hillsides, and planting of trees ~• ~ : throughout the site will represent a ~ '' significant improvement in the en- ' _ vironment. I filled in many holes on just a tiny portion of the site which was used to I load passengers for the steam train. I ~'" "'" don't believe that the cif al ne d do y o cool j + an adequate job of cleaning up the entire site. I would very much like to have the city' ,. ,, develop the park so that I and the other . residents of New Brighton could keep it to ~ "'~~ ourselves. I don't like the `strings' at- - tached to a regional park, especially the " ~ j` ; high-speed boat launches. (Perhaps' an ., .. ordinance can be passed banning high ; ;.; •~ horsepower " motors altogether. ) ~~ " `•a•'~~~ However, I think the Master Plan . represents a welcome change from the "" largely negative directions taken by local, • state and federal government in the last • '~'- ~ few years. •~ •`,?y ' ~ I don't think I'm the `average' citizen • ?~~;~ :,•" that Mrs. Polzak wishes to hear from with '~ ~ ~ leer proposed referendum. I think the time ~has• ~corpae~ to -open up Long Lake to 8s . ' :•; '^' `: ~ • percent of the New Brighton residents ~ that do not reside on the lake. Let's not ° wait for referendums and environmental impact statements before making a decision. I urge all the citizens of New ~ • Brighton to actively support the proposed : ' ~ " ' Iang Lake park development or to j 1 ~ :• ;~ present a realistic alternative. Otherwise, . • ~ _`. my family and many others in the com- ;: mrtnity'may never' see that'"future"city park :which the Lang Lake Improvement Association so ardently wishes to preserve for our descendants.. Mark J. Anderson New Brighton, MN ~"~ ;i: ~.~ .. {•. • r a; •.~ :.