Call your State Assembley reps and urge them to vote this bill down and keep our public land from being handed over to developers. The bill wants the taxpayers to pay a quarter-billion dollars for the privilege of having large swaths our free public park turned into a for-profit operation.

The Hudson County reps are:
Rep. Angela V. McKnight - 201-360-2502
Rep. Pedro Mejia - 201-770-1303
Rep. Annette Chaparro - 201-683-7917
Rep. William B. Sampson IV - 609-847-3500
Rep. Angelica M. Jimenez - 201-223-4247
Rep. Raj Mukherji - 2012-626-4000

But this isn't just a Hudson County issue! I encourage everyone to keep calling assembly members from around the state (listed here: https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/legislative-roster). LSP is a state park that belongs to all of us, not just a handful of greedy developers! Some points to make when you call:

— This is public land that belongs to us; the bill would turn large sections of the park into for-profit spaces someone else will profit from, and the taxpayers will pay a quarter of a billion dollars for that to happen.

— The Senate pointedly struck down an amendment to protect Caven Point, a beautiful, open-to-all nature preserve and crucial wildlife habitat. Billionaire Paul Fireman has been trying for years to bulldoze this fragile ecosystem to expand his millionaires-only country club, and this bill will allow him to do just that.

— This vote isn't just a vote over what our park looks like. The core issue is who's more important to the Assemblyman/woman — all of your constituents and everyone in this state? Or a handful of greedy developers?

And be nice to the person on the phone! They didn't write this bill! And we're calling hopeful that the Assembly member will be on our side and protect our public spaces from being paved over for the sake of a greedy few.

Tomorrow the Environment and Energy Committee of the New Jersey State Senate will vote on a bill that environmental and civic groups fear would lead to the large-scale commercialization of Liberty State Park.

https://jcitytimes.com/bill-promoting- ... efore-committee-tomorrow/