Letter: Park’s serene character must be preserved

Thursday, April 28, 2005 | 9:01 a.m.

I attend many meetings with assorted groups interested in maintaining the natural resources and historical sites in North Las Vegas. In fact, I am the founder of the Northwest Las Vegas Equestrian Safety Coalition, a group that works closely with the Tule Springs Preservation Committee. I'm also part of a "working group" assembled by the Bureau of Land Management to help decide how to conserve the upper Las Vegas wash area for future recreational use.

Las Vegas is diverse and should be. We have the Strip, Lake Mead, Red Rock Canyon, Spring Mountain Ranch State Park, assorted community parks, new homes, churches and synagogues along with the new possibilities coming downtown, thanks to our mayor. For those who do not know, Floyd Lamb State Park is a charming, low-key, tree-lined haven for peacocks and ponds offering beauty to hikers, equestrians, bird watchers and others.

Recently, we learned that a majority of the Las Vegas City Council voted in favor of acquiring Floyd Lamb State Park. We are completely opposed to this. There is a law to maintain the park in a "passive use" manner, to protect the integrity not only of the park "proper" but also of the surrounding land. This vote is out of touch with the residents and people who use and enjoy the park.

Do you know that there are many parks in the valley in dire need of repair? There is not enough funding to repair those parks and provide adequate personnel to staff them. If the city buys Floyd Lamb State Park, what will happen is that a serene, historical, natural sanctuary for birds and other wildlife will ultimately be either developed into another housing development or be plowed under, making way for yet another ball field.

This should not happen! Saving the park for future generations is our responsibility.

MICKI JAY