Senator John Flanagan Protests Litrim Veto

DISTRICT OFFI€E: 23-24 ARCYI-E SOUARE BABYLON LONC ISLAND, NY ] I7O2 163 t) 669-9200

OWEN H, IOHNSON CHAIRMAN OF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN SUBCOI\4MITTEE ON L.I. ]\IARINE DISTRICT COMMISSIO N ER ATLANTIC STATES MARINE FISHERIES COMMISSION

ALBANY OFFICE: ROOM 9t3

THE SENATE STATE OF NEW YORK

LEGISLA'IIVE OFFICE BLDC. ALBANY, NY I2247 (518) 45r-341 l

E-MAIL ADDRESS: oiohnson@senate state ny.us

September 24,2008 www.

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WEBSITE: natorowen joh

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Hon. David Paterson New York State Governor Executive Chamber, State Capitol Albany, New York 12224 Re: A.9870-A15.6728-A

Dear Governor Paterson: As the Senate sponsors of the above-referenced legislation, we write this letter to express our profound disappointment in your decision to veto this extremely important legislation that would benefit the residents and protect the environment of Western Suffolk County. In reviewing your Veto Message 73, we note your directive which provides as follows:

"In the interim, I am

asking the DOT, the Department of Environmental Conservation (which maintains the Preserve), and the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (which has jurisdiction over the Sagtikos Parkway), to meet with federal, state and local leaders) as well as civic and environmental groups, especially Friends of the Edgewood Preserve and the Four Towns Civic Association, and private developers, and develop a comprehensive regional traffic plan to present to both the Legislature and myself early next year." In light of this directive, we ask that you provide us with specific information pertaining to the make up of this ad-hoc committee including: the name of the members; who will serve as chairperson; dates of meetings held to date and those scheduled in the future; and a specific date for this committee to submit a final report to the Legislature and your office. To be clear, we believe your decision to veto this legislation that would have transferred an approximate 120-acre parcel of environmentally sensitive land from the Pilgrim State Hospital into the Oak Brush Plain Preserve was wrong and ask that you take note of the following while the ad-hoc committee is deliberatins:

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