Some environmental bond act spending wasn’t about environment

The Newsday series “Public Space, Private Benefit” [News, July 22-24] peeled back only the surface of a rotten onion we know is Nassau County government.

The purpose of the Environmental Bond Act was misrepresented when we voted on it in 2006. The question put to voters said money would be spent to preserve open space, reduce water pollution, protect drinking water, improve parks and remediate brownfields.

So why was money spent on frivolous expenses such as installing a replica locomotive on North Broadway in Hicksville? This had zero to do with the environment, so who was the politically connected train buff?

It is a crime that so much of our money was spent on decorative fences and baseball field backstops that had nothing to do with protecting environmentally sensitive areas.

Jerry Romano, Sea Cliff

I live within walking distance of Red Spring Woods in Glen Cove, and while I appreciate the solitude and peace of my occasional walks there, I question why this property was preserved.

As noted in your article “Beautiful spaces public rarely uses” [News, July 24], there is no effective parking on the Red Spring Lane entrance and the single, unmarked trail dead ends at a road that does not allow public access. Aside from this, the slope of the property and single trail make it almost impossible for someone not in excellent condition to navigate the property.

Most upsetting is that there appears to be no plan at all for the maintenance and security of this site. Graffiti and empty beer bottles indicate that this has become another hangout for kids. I went myself earlier this year and removed bags of garbage. Had the money available for purchases been used to add contiguous property to existing parks and preserves, these issues might have been avoided.

Cynthia Lovecchio, Glen Cove