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Page 8, PHOENIX, June 6, 1974Editorials ,Disappointed...This week, The PHOENIX reports another chapter in the tangled web of stories relating to the emergency response system of the Police Department and the public ambulance service operated by Long Island College Hospital in Cobble Hill.The latest story, the fifth in The PHOENIX in the six weeks since a Heights resident was stricken with a heart attack in Columbia Street Park, presents more evidence of serious deficiencies in the emergency system at the Hospital, and we are disappointed in the lack of public outcry about the situation the facts present.We are also disappointed in the casual attitude assumed by the City's Health and Hospitals Corporation, whose procedures and guidelines appear to have been violated, causing needless delay that prevented immediate response in a situation where treatment might have saved a life.The District Attorney is investigating the possibility of criminal charges, but this is a side issue. What concerns us is whether this single case is an isolated one, or whether this is the standard of emergency response.We%u2019ve always felt comforted to see the red and white LICH ambulance racing down Atlantic Avenue, because it implied fast response to people in trouble. If it takes debate to get a response, however%u2014particularly when the emergency is two blocks away%u2014that is very discomforting. A community-oriented hospital, of which we have a number in the general downtown area, should be expected to respond best of all to neighborhood emergencies. Given the facts, this is clearly not the %u201c best%u201d response possible.So now we have a case of what appears to be a poor response to a neighborhood emergency, and conflicting stories among the parties to that emergency. Someone other than we should be asking, %u201c Why?%u201d ; and %u201c Is this the standard of service?%u201d ; and, if so, %u201c Must we live with it?%u201d^llllllllflllllllllllllllllll||||||||||IIII|||||||||||||||||||||||||lllllli|||||||||||||||||||IllllUIIIllllllllllilllllllllllllllltllllllllllllliIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIiIllllllllllilllE%u00a31 Horse-drawn carriages were a fam iliar sight around the Grand Army Plaza Arch at the turn of 1= the century. Postcard courtesy of Alan Kone.SlUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII||||||||||||||||j|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||(|||||||||(||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||i|||||||||||||M|| ||||%u201e |||%u201e |i| | ^to the EditorMisinformed BoosterismIs Dulling Your PerceptionFrom Tiny AcornsNo article in this column in recent memory has stirred more passioned response than what we thought was an innocuous two-paragraph item on a Brooklyn Sports Center in the first issue in May. This week, in the Letters column, we have a communication accusing us, along with a host of others, of various acts and attitudes which the writer deems odious.In our opinion, the only thing worse than blind and secret planning is the outraged opposition of %u201c the community,%u201d as expressed by self- or semi-appointed representatives. The attitude that drives many community leaders that says that government is evil, filled with evil men, out to do evil and destruction to %u201c the community%u201d is absurd.We hold no brief for stupid acts of government, bad administrators, or bad or corrupt public officials. We do believe they should perform their official duties to a high standard of quality, or be replaced. To operate on the assumption that %u201c It%u2019s them against us!%u201d is foolish and short-sighted, and those who act from this perspective inherently limit what they might accomplish. (For one thing, it assumes that %u201c they%u201d %u2014the city officials%u2014know what they want to do in cases like this.)As to the comments specifically about The PHOENIX, we can assure all our readers that the one accurate accusation that can always be made of us is that we %u201c suffer from an excess of %u2018boosterism.%u2019%u201d Hopefully, this will always be the case. Buttosay that we %u201c attempt to stifle discussion%u201d on any subject indicates only that the writer is not a regular reader. The one thing for which we have gained a reputation (often including the disfavor of our staff) is that we are willing to print anything that relates to our local areas. Anything from anybody. Our news columns seek an objectivity that is certainly unequaled by any other community newspaper in New York City.This letter and other responses we have received to matters in the Atlantic Terminal area in recent months indicate that there is enormous interest inthefutureof thisarea. In the next few issues, we will be taking an in-depth look at this area, the urban renewal program there, and those who are at work in planning and building the future for it.! he PHOENIX is published 50 times ayear by advocate Ptess, Inc., 155 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn, New York 11201. Single copy price is 15i; annual subscription by mail in New York State, effective July 1, 1973, is $5.00; outside New York State, $6.00.Michael A. Armstrong, Editor & PublisherEileen Blair, Managing Editor155 Atlantic Avenue c f %u2022%u00a3%u00a3 /,,ui w m yi I I Hbvi \\ /Tel. 643-1032 \\To the Editor:Your recent editorials %u201c Don%u2019t Nit-Pick Over Stadium\1974) and %u201c We%u2019re All Seeking the Same Thing%u2019%u2019 (May 23, 1974) contain misleading assumptions that require a reply.1. You imply that the redevelopment of the Atlantic Terminal Urban Renewal Area is not yet decided and is therefore open to new proposals.That is not true. The Atlantic Terminal Urban Renewal Plan was enacted into law in 1968. It very specifically said that the area was to be redeveloped for educational and residential uses. On that basis the plan gained community support. On that basis the Federal government provided millions of dollars in Urban Renewal funds.The legal status of the site proposed for the sports stadium is precisely defined. In 1969 Site 2A was designated for new housing and the Fort Greene Non-Profit Improvement Corporation was designated as sponsor (which means developer). This decision has been re-affirmed many times since then. For example, the Amended Urban Renewal Plan unanimously adopted by the Board of Estim ate in January, 1973 says \provide approximately 1,120 additional units on parcels 2A, 2B and 3 of the Atlantic Terminal renewal area.%u201dThe community worked for many years to rid itself of the odious Fort Greene Wholesale Meat Market and to replace it with new' housing. Now that the Meat Market is finally going, the commitment for new housing must be honored.2. You seem to be suffering an excess of %u201c boosterism '' which prevents vour giving careful attention to the financial foundations of the proposed stadium. You should investigate what is happening to these stadiums in other cities -- sec %u201c Fortune\%u201c It's Promoters vs Taxpayers in theSuperstadium Game........l he costsusually turn out to be as monumental as the structures -- and the benefits far more nebulous.\investigation need go no further than Nassau County -- the Nassau Coliseum has been in financial trouble since the dav it opened.3 \the officials have to say about the, Atlantic Terminal site....%u201d . Thatstatement from your editorial is incredible. As a community newspaper, you should know that what \almost always bad news for the community. It is difficult to think of a single improvement in Brooklyn in the 14 years I have lived here that was not initiated by the community and usually forced down the throats of unwilling %u201cofficials.You naively assume that official planners have the interests of the community at heart and that they have some kind of expertise. Both assumptions are false. For some curious reason, you never mention the other project of the Office of Downtown Brooklyn Development for the Atlantic Terminal area -- theBoro Views EssentialTo the Editor:I was delighted to read the April 26 edition of the PHOENIX which contained a special 20 page progress report on the development of Downtown Brooklyn. Every resident of Brooklyn and indeed the entire City must understand the importance of the re-development of this vital area and your edition was a great contribution to this effort.There are many other matters which are of importance to Brooklynites and 1 hope that you will find an opportunity to focus attention on them. For example, not too many Borough residents have been involved in the discussions over the future of the West Side Highway. Public hearings begin June 20th on the various alternative proposals by the West Side Highway Project Study. This artery is essential to residents of Brooklyn and we face the possibility that its future may be decided without thorough consideration of the views of Brooklynites.Your paper plays a key role in bringing such matters to the attention of its readers and I congratulage you for its high quality and excellent reporting.With all good wishes.Cordially,Sylvia Deutsch CommissionerCity Plinning Commissioninter-city Bus Terminal proposed for Site 7 between Atlantic Avenue and Pacific Street. This would mean that the new campus of Baruch College would be surrounded by instant blight - the Sports Stadium on one side and the Bus Terminal on the other. 1 don%u2019t think that it requires a degree in City Planning to understand how inappropriate that would be.You also apear to have fallen for the \of the Office of Downtown Brooklyn Development, which is the standard act when an agency is planning to devastate a community. First \only under study, so it's premature to get into a detailed discussion\and then suddenly %u201c Planning has progressed so far that it would be impossible to make changes now.%u201d This was the routine used for the World Trade Center, the West Side Convention Center and numerous other horrors inflicted on New York in recent years.Most regrettably, you attempt to stifle discussion of the very real problems in planning, financing, transportation, pollution, and community benefit that arise from the ODBD%u2019s schemes by saying \All Seeking the Same Thing.%u201dI don%u2019t know what you%u2019re seeking, but we are seeking the faithful carrying out of the promises made to the community in the Atlantic Terminal Urban Renewal Plan. Sincerely yours,Paul Kerrigan,Chairman,Fort Greene Non-Profit Improvement CorporationPHOENIX Is ASummer FestivalDear Sir:My committee wishes to thank the Phoenix Newspaper for all its support and encouragement of tiie Brooklyn Heights Summer Festival.We hope that your commitment to the community, and genuine concern to further worthwhile projects, is clear to all vour readers.We have appreciated your help, and feel you deserve much credit for helping to bring the Festival to life! Sincerely,Knan Russell, Coordinator,Heights Summer Festival