Letters: Imagining what the Hub could be

Planning for the future of the Nassau Coliseum area might benefit by expanding the scope of the project. Here's an idea worth considering:

Create a Nassau County Central Development District bound on the North by Old Country Road, on the South by Hempstead Turnpike, on the West by Clinton-Glen Cove Road and on the East by Merrick Avenue. It would be anchored on the perimeter by the Roosevelt Field Shopping Center, the Source Mall, Hofstra University and Reckson Plaza.

Build parking structures at strategic locations along the perimeter of this "superblock," and a long parking lot over the Meadowbrook Parkway. Within, create a ground-level people-mover system similar to the one that connects Jamaica Station and Kennedy Airport.

This would minimize vehicle traffic within the core and free up land now used for surface parking for other development. That development could be a mix of housing, business, commercial and entertainment and green spaces, so we would have people living, playing and working within this district. A central focus would be a new or refurbished Coliseum. We would create a "new town" within our community.

The people-mover and parking structures could be financed by an increased tax on parcels connected to these features. This tax would be partially offset to the property owners by allowing denser development, which would be possible because they would not need to provide enormous parking for their individual sites.

George Santos, Sea Cliff

Editor's note: The writer is a project manager for an architectural firm.

What did Robert Moses suggest?

It amazes me how many politicians seem to be constantly looking for ideas as to what to do with the Coliseum property. No one thinks to take a fresh look at the publication "A report by the Nassau County Committee on development of Mitchel Field," issued shortly after Mitchel Field was abandoned as an Air Force base in 1961. The committee was headed by "master builder" Robert Moses.

This report, and many others, produced good plans and ideas, but what followed was a complete squandering in many instances of this golden asset.

Whatever takes place now must focus on eliminating Nassau's seemingly ever-increasing deficit. As I thumb through this 1961 report, I see many opportunities still there.

William Devlin, Rockville Centre