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Page Six, PHOENIXSolutionThreatened ByNarrow VoteWhat seems to us as perhaps the only viable solution to thelong, drawn-out battle between the Long Island College Hospitaland the Cobble Hill community was severely threatened by anarrow 27-26 vote Tuesday night to limit the height of any newhospital structures to the typical four-story height of a Cobble Hillbrownstone.Although the Community Planning Committee (CPC) hadfinally persuaded the hospital to agree to plans to build its new$100 million facility over the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway withan apparent understanding that the new structures not exceed12 stories or the height of existing hospital buildings%u2014Tuesday%u2019svote for four-stories may jeopardize the entire plan to adopt theexpressway expansion site.Those clinging to low rise structures were apparently in nomood to compromise; they claimed anything higher would fencein their neighborhood and eternally block their view of thewaterfront. Past experiences with the hospital no doubt prompted in some way this intractable determination on the part of 27residents to oppose anything and everything the hospitalfavors%u2014sensible or not. Yet to take such a myoptic position is selfdefeating. If the hospital does not expand over the BQE, wherewill it go to replace its deteriorating bed space? Expansion offacilities into surrounding brownstone blocks is an obviouspossibility if western expansion is cut off. Despicable as that ideais to the community, the hospital would have little other immediate choice, other than learn the area altogether. Existinghospital facilities are borderline at best; and unless improved, wecannot expect the quality of health care provided to approach thestandards we desire.Maybe they didn%u2019t have all the votes Tuesday night, but a groupof hard working Cobble Hill residents have been negotiatingdiligently for the past several months to persuade the hospital toaccept the BQE site%u2014a site the hospital rejected as unfeasibleuntil recently.We think that the matter should be brought up for a vote oncemore. The 53 votes cast last Tuesday night hardly constitute aquorum in the Cobble Hill community. Given another chance, wethink the community will reconsider the alternatives and casttheir vote- not out of obstinancy, but out of a realistic appraisalof how best to accommodate the needs of a hospital withoutsacrificing the residential needs of the surrounding neighborhood.Our Response ToHis: We Care.Does Department?The recent PHOENIX editorial raising questions about Parks,Recreation and Cultural Affairs Administrator Clurman's new%u201cget tough%u201d approach to park maintenance drew a well reasonedletter in response. Administrator Clurman%u2019s letter, published inlast week's letters column, left out one all important point: Ourcommunities have long made efforts to cooperate with the ParksDepartment to no avail.Activists in Park Slope have been trying for years to helpdevelop a new playground in Prospect Park. Carrol! Park remainsa focal point for active citizen involvement and Ft. Greene hasbeen a local \munities. Heights residents have begged to improve facilities atricirepuiit oi. pidygiuuiiu cniu v^ddman riazd. Trie probiemalways ends with the Park Department, which never seems to beable to work with the community beyond endless meetings andexcuses.We are certain that Mr. Clurman is sincere in his desire toimprove our desperate parks situation, but we suggest that hetake a good look at his own department's poor record ofachievement and cooperation before he talks about demandingcommunity support from any quarter.Things AreFlatbush AvenueThe two major avenuesbisecting the PHOENIXcoverage area %u2014 Atlanticand Flatbush Avenues %u2014are currently undergoing arenewal phase as privateowners and entrepreneurslaunch new businesses andupgrade the physical appearances of old ones.During coming weeks, thePHOENIX will report toreaders on individual andgovernment actions that arehelping speed the renewalprocess of these two greatthoroughfares. Here, onAtlantic Ave. between Hicksand Henry is the face of anearly completed renewalbeing done by the firm ofMcVicker & Higgenbottom, aBrooklyn direct mail andmailing company. Thebuilding houses the firm onthe ground floor and hasbeen converted to modernmm'Don%u2019t quote me,BY SCO RPIOThe Mayoral sweepstakes aregetting into the advanced preannouncement stage, with localactivity beginning to heatparticularly among the reformminded hopefuls. City Administrator Jerry Kretchmer hasbeen on the coffee circuit in theSlope-Heights-Fort Greene areawith a series of private meetingswith various reform clubworkers and community leadertypes. Assemblyman AlBlumenthal, who has had manyprivate meetings with civicworkers in the area, had onecoffee klatch last week in FortGreene. Congressman HermanBadillo, met with a group lastSaturday in Park Slope, andmembers of a Carroll GardensCobble Hill political club havehad a number of meetings withCongressman Mario Biaggi.Where does it all lead? Well,the eight or 10 prospectivecandidates will never all get onthe ballot (it takes 5,000 validsignatures of voters, city-wide,to put a candidate's name innomination) and even if theycould, there aren%u2019t enoughseasoned political workersaround to mount much of acampaign for everybody. So, thecandidates shop for support %u2014pre-announcement support. Notenough support, most likely noannouncement.nomination and later pushed hiscandidacy on the Conservativeline have made it official byformally organizing a newConservative club in the SouthBrookiyn-Heights area. Goodluck to them, as they may serveto balance out the newRepublican club organized bythat sometimes Democrat,sometimes Republican BuddyScotto.%u2605 %u2605 %u2605 %u2605 %u2605The attempted coup in thePark Slope-based CentralBrooklyn IndependentDemocrats to turn out the club'sfirst fern president, MarySlusarev, failed Hast month.Though there was somedissatisfaction with her administrative skills, it was difficultto consider challenger VictorHausner seriously, many clubmembers reported. (His politicalexperience consisted of a stinton the Stanley Arnold for VicePresident campaign).A A A A AM W W W WThe political season inBrooklyn Heights was launchedon its merry way Saturday with aroomful of candidates who madethe West Brooklyn IndependentDemocrats%u2019 fancy dinner at theBossert a rousing success.From the mayoral contingentthere were CongressmaiHerman Badillo, AssemblymaiAl Blumenthal and JerormKretchmer, all making throunds of tables, talking with thireform stalwards fronthroughout Brooklyn. SenatoJay Goldin and AssemblymaiTony Oliveri, both potentiacandidates for Comptroller, alsidid the scene, as well as PauO'Dwyer, who officially announced his candidacy foPresident of the City Council tw