To: Eric Schneiderman, NYS Attorney General, Melissa Mark-Viverito, NYC Council Speaker/District 8 Councilmember, Mitchell J. Silver, FAICP, NYC Parks Commissioner, Letitia James, NYC Public Advocate, and James Patchett, President NYCEDC

Stop NYC From Taking Away Public Parkland From The People of The Bronx

The New York City Economic Development Corporation is attempting to take away public land that was mapped and promised as parkland in The Bronx.

We the people of The Bronx will NOT sit by while land is taken away from the public, land that was not only promised as parkland but mapped out as such as evidenced by our documentation.

If the city is allowed to do this, this will be a precedent for the NYC to do this to any parkland in ANY borough.

Why is this important?

The New York City Economic Development Corporation is attempting to take away public land that was mapped and promised as parkland in The Bronx.

Known as Pier 5, the 4.7 acre is immediately adjacent to Mill Pond Park directly to the south and was planned as an expansion. NYC Parks Department included the acreage of Pier 5 into the total of Mill Pond Park until recently when they deleted all online evidence of it.

We the people of The Bronx and NYC will NOT sit by while land is taken away from the public, land that was not only promised as parkland but mapped out as such as evidenced by our documentation.

If the city is allowed to do this, this will be a precedent for the NYC to do this to any parkland in ANY borough.

This is why we need you to sign this petition and let it be known that this is unacceptable and also illegal in the State of New York to take away land once it has been alienated as parkland.

According to an attorney familiar with such cases:

“In order to convey parkland to a nonpublic entity, or to use parkland for another purpose, a municipality must receive prior authorization from the State in the form of legislation enacted by the New York State Legislature and approved by the Governor.

“Once land has been dedicated to use as a park, it cannot be diverted for uses other than recreation, in whole or in part, temporarily or permanently, even for another public purpose, without legislative approval.” United States v. City of New York, 96 F.Supp.2d 195, 202 (E.D.N.Y. 2000). This clear law has been applied consistently since 1871.

The question is: what is parkland?

The term “dedicated” is often used in referring to municipal parkland subject to State alienation requirements. Common phrases include “lands dedicated for park purposes” and “dedicated parklands.” The dedication of parkland may be formal through an official act by the governing body of the municipality.

Dedication can also be implied. This may occur through actions which demonstrate that the government considers the land to be parkland or the public used it as a park.
Examples include: a municipality publicly announcing its intention to purchase the lands specifically for use as a park, “master planning” for recreational purposes, budgeting for park purposes, or “mapping” lands as parkland. Kenny v. Board of Trustees of Village of Garden City, 735 N.Y.S.2d 606, 607 (App. Div. 2nd 2001)(property acquired for recreational purposes and used for recreation was instilled with public trust even though never officially dedicated).
Here is the State’s handbook on alienation: http://nysparks.com/publications/documents/AlienationHandbook.pdf