To the editor:

I’m confused: is it now Cape Coral Park(ing)and Re(staurants) instead of parks and recreation?

I bought a home near the Yacht Club community park.The park is disappearing into parking and more parking plans. The community had to fight to keep tennis courts. Low-income folks lost their only venue for weddings and family gatherings with the demolition of the pavilion — too expensive to maintain? Wrong kind of expense it seems.

We are building big expensive docks for restaurant boat parking. We have seen the crashed posts, smashed ladders and ripped down bumper strips so with constant repair I’m sure restaurant patrons will be happy. The maintenance will be expensive.

Now our leaders plan to pay to move the boat ramp from the river (with few near residents and current green space parking available) into a heavily populated residential canal and near to paying customers at the marina. More parking is then required — more concrete parking lots for boaters near where they put in in addition to the multi-floor parking construction. (Please note — Cape Coral has more canals than any city in the world — therefore many taxpayers have their boat in their backyard canal but they should pay for more boats, more parking. )

The Yacht Club’s main expense is to add a concrete parking garage at cost of $5 million? I live next to the park and the parking is very rarely full. Let me say that again: The parking lots are rarely full! I am guessing people simply don’t want to walk any distance. Our highly-paid consultants had one best idea to save a few steps. It’s a loud/ugly / concrete/ bright lights /parking structure in my neighborhood park/ my backyard? That structure was the constant in all proposals. Lots of parking seems to be priority… at considerable expense.

The current plan has 20% more beach — which the mayor says is a lot. Really? That’s the best your design team could do? Your biggest and best beach got very little attention They removed the pavilion — is that in the 20% formula? Or is it from just closing and moving the recently renovated boat ramp?

Where are other ideas? Was the design team instructed not to research other alternatives? It doesn’t appear that they even attempted to listen to customer feedback in resetting priorities. There are other parking alternatives that should be considered.

I want recreation that isn’t all about pollution, noise and motors, concrete. I don’t see any care for the environment in the plans. Parks should be green space, beach, tennis, swimming — areas to bike, to walk, to enjoy our beautiful Florida. Why spend so much for concrete structures that do not belong in a community park? I guessing because my city officials want another commercial property — another restaurant on the beach — regardless of the park.

Is this how the city values residents and what they said they want in their neighborhood park? Or is it just the city leaders promoting the city?

Let’s change the name — it more accurately promotes their mission. No surprises that way. Cape Coral Parking and Restaurants, not parks not recreation.

Jan Welter

Cape Coral