On "Pocket Parks"

I did not stay for the segment on "pocket parks" at the public workshop on Tuesday but I am in total agreement with Commissioner Mulvehill in protecting and preserving these public lands for the citizens of Lake Worth.

The political battle is that those living on the Intracoastal Waterway, or in those neighborhoods, do not want anyone who is walking on city property walking too close to their private property. They believe that only criminals will use these "pocket parks" and therefore, they say, their property or welfare will be in jeopardy. This is a public right of way that must be maintained as any other area in our city with the same amount of safety patrols. The question was asked of the candidates in one of the recent Forums.

I was talking to a citizen this morning that called me and stated that Commissioner Mulvehill was wrong. He equated it to the same thing as negotiating for decal parking spaces at our beach after taking County money. I do not see the correlation here and therefore do not understand the argument as only City money will be used toward the parking for residents with permits, not the County's. It is OUR beach.

The beach, as do the "pocket parks," belongs to the taxpayers of Lake Worth. It is all the taxpayers who maintain both and the city is responsible for that maintenance. The $5 million dollar bond money that was allocated to the City of Lake Worth for our beach is our money. We have been paying on this since 2002. It is about time that the County pays off. And we finally have a site plan that we will submit.

The caller reminded me that it was they who live in these areas who pay the majority of the taxes, a reason I guess for not allowing public access. I really was stunned by this argument. Because someone can afford an expensive home, lives better than most people in the United States, does not give them any more justification to grab public land for their own private use with some flimsy excuse of safety. Has anyone bothered to ask the public at large?

All dead end rights of way were designated in 1982 as mini-parks. These are public rights of way that belong to ALL the citizens of Lake Worth, not just to the wealthy few.

Candidate for Mayor, Bill Coakley says, "If it's public property, it's public property. We can't restrict some public property and not others. We need to have a consensus from the greater public and let them listen to the neighborhood concerns. The Democracy Project on my web site is a perfect tool."

Laurence McNamara, candidate for Mayor says, "Any waterfront access that is now public needs to remain public."