October 4, 2007 - Senator Flanagan Requests Meeting With Commissioner Ash

f

ENATOR IOHN J. FLANAGAN

LEGISLATIVE OFFICE BUILDING Room6lT Albany, New yofk I 2247

2nd DISTRICT

Chalr Corporations, Authorities t, Commissions

Committe€s

THE SENATE STATE OF NEW YORK

Aging

15 t81

DISTRICT

Consumer Protection

260 Middle Country Road Suite 203

Higher Education

Smithtown, New york t l7E7

Insurance

163ll 361.2154 Fax l6jlJ 36t-5367

LA

DOr

Transportation Veterans, Homeland Security f, N4ilitary Affairs

'

455-207 |

Fax (5lE) 426-6904

INTERNET

October 4.2007

ww

senatorflanagan.com

llana gan@senate state.ny.us

Ms. Carol Ash Office of the Commissioner NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Empire State Plaza, Agency Building #l Albany, New York 12238 Dear Commissioner Ash:

While we are ten months into the new Administration, the Kings Park community and I have no clearer understanding of your, or Governor Spitzer's, plans for the future of the newly designated portion of Nissequogue River State Park.

Despite repeated calls and correspondence with your office :e rlost of which have been initiated by me -- you have yet to publicly announce your intentions for maintaining all of this property as state parkland. In addition, other than an environmental engineering report conducted on the original 153 acres of Nissequogue River State Park, t have no knowledge or information from your department of what you are working on with respect to the additional 370 acres at this location.

It seems that at every step of this process and every question presented to you on this issue, your office has either delayed in responding or given incomplete or carefuliy worded answers that require constant vigilance on my part to seek status reports or further clarification. Knowing that I have been extensively involved in this issue and that I have a keen interest in the outcome, it would seem reasonable as Commissioner to have your department provide periodic updates to my office on the progress, or lack thereof, on all actions being taken at Nissequogue River State Park. Instead, you have allowed a strained relationship to develop for no apparent reason, other than the likely possibility that you and Governor Spitzer never had intentions of maintaining this

property as parkland fiom the beginning. As the State Senator representing the Kings park community's interest, however, I have an obligation and responsibility to provide factual information to my constituents on matters of irnportance to them.

t.,

.'age 2)

Commissioner Ash October 4,2007

That is why, I am asking to personally meet with you and Commissioner pete Grannis Ilom the Department of Environmental Conservation to discuss this issue in greater detail. you have represented to me on a number of occasions that your departments are working together on the contamination and remediation issues surrounding the 370 additional acres of parkland at Nissequogue. It is my hope that such a meeting will shed light on all the work that has been completed so far, as well as the work that remains ongoing into the future. I will be in Albany on October 22,2007 to attend a special session of the Senate, and would appreciate knowing your availability on that day.

If a meeting is unable to be agreed to or arranged in the near future, I will explore the possibility of requesting that a joint hearing be held through the Senate Committees on Environmental Conservation and Tourism, Recreation and Sporls Development to collect the information I am seeking. Thank you for your immediate attention to this matter. I look forward to your reply.

cc: Commissioner Pete Grannis, N