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ENATOR IOHN J. FLANAGAN LEGISLATIVE OFFICE BUILDING

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October 4.2007 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