Rich buying the Hudson
To The Editor:
Re “Pier55 project still afloat as Corps modifies permit” (news article, June 22):
People in the immediate community around where the Pier55 might be built were never consulted about it. This plan was created through secret meetings and West Villagers close to the proposed site were not invited.
I, for one, find it troubling that pieces of the lovely Hudson River can now be given — or maybe sold? — to wealthy individuals to build monuments to themselves.
Is this the beginning of a troubling new trend?
Elaine Young
Ignorance is not bliss
To The Editor:
Re “Orwellian return to 1984 and ‘Death to Homos’ ” (talking point, by Tim Gay, June 22):
A few years ago, I was telling some young gay men at a predominantly “gay” beach about a project I was working on about the importance of safe spaces for gay men, and the oral histories I was transcribing about the venerable Hillside Campground.
They were not impressed: Why would anybody need to go to a remote campground in order to feel safe?
The disconnect with our recent past was alarming. So I love this column from New York City’s The Villager.
Brian Kaufman
Spreading the word
To The Editor:
Re “Stuy Town is fertile ground for composting plan” (news article, June 22):
Thank you to Scott Axelrod and The Villager for the composting write-up. A nonresident went so far as to walk over to our welcome center with a print version of the article to thank us for rolling out this program.
Apparently, she had been collecting food scraps for her friend who lived in Stuyvesant Town for years, and dropping them off at the Union Square farmers market.
Now she doesn’t have to do that anymore.
Marynia Kruk
Kruk is community affairs manager, StuyTown
Wild fireworks hurt wildlife
To The Editor:
Fireworks displays, like the ones sponsored by the New York Philharmonic and the New York City Parks Department at the end of concerts in parks citywide, are a cliché. The sound of explosions on a recent Wednesday night was all too familiar — like something was blowing up a few blocks away. But it was only the end of the Philharmonic concert in Central Park and the tired fireworks that many people wish would just stop. Enough is enough.
New York City’s rhetoric about its new WildlifeNYC campaign is not believable. Those same raccoons lauded on subway posters are frightened out of their minds when explosions go off in the park — their home. I have been at the park when I heard the frantic flapping of wings in reaction to the first explosions. I wondered how many dead birds were found the next day when it was light. The wonderful music of Dvorak, Bernstein and Gershwin should be allowed to stand on its own.
Fireworks displays are an environmental disaster, releasing chemicals into the air, soil and water. The noise causes extreme stress to carriage horses, pet dogs, cats and the many wildlife species that occupy the parks. People who have pets can attest to how stressed they become. Terrorized dogs have been known to run off and get lost.
The noise can be heard for miles, sounding like explosions. The “bombs bursting in air” is upsetting to war veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress.
The good news is that there are ecofriendly and quiet versions of fireworks — essentially light shows. Other cities are doing it. New York can do it also.
Elizabeth Forel
Forel is president, Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages
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