Still Waiting On Replies/Use Of Petition Comments

We are sad to report that there are still a number of representatives that have not replied to us regarding the petition. Here are their names and contact information.

Dan Blue danb@ncleg.net
Linda Coleman lindac@ncleg.net
Nelson Dollar nelsond@ncleg.net
Paul Stam pauls@ncleg.net
Vernon Malone vernonm@ncleg.net
Marilyn Avila marilyna@ncleg.net

You should also know that we sent the petition to the Wake County Commissions a week ago and have received not one reply from them. It might be that they feel, like the City Councilmen that they cannot influence the State and therefore it is not necessary to acknowledge receipt of the petition. This might be true, but, if I were a politician, I’d take advantage of any opportunity to communicate with my constituents. If you want to discuss Access to Umstead with the Commissioners, here is their contact information. You can reach Commissioners Paul Coble, Harold Webb, Betty Lou Ward, Lindy Brown, Joe Bryan, Tom Gurley and Ken Gardner at:

www.wakegov.com/commissioners/default.htm

This week one of the petition signers used our petition as a means to publicize his/her petition. This was done without contacting us and may or may not have anything to do with the Access Umstead petition. We discussed deleting this comment, but, for the sake of open communication have decided to leave it. In the future, unless we are first contacted, all comments that are placed on the petition with the intention of publicizing another cause will be removed.

A supporter sent us the following link to Joe Miller's News & Observer blog which contains some interesting information about access to Umstead. Here is the link:

http://blogs.newsobserver.com/joemiller/
index.php?title=update_crabtree_creek_greenway_umstead_p&more
=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

We are making progress. Thanks for your support!

The Access Umstead Committee had several communications with Rep. Ty Harrell and his assistant Lara Swanson today. This included phone conversations with both.

They wanted us to know that they were completely surprised when told that Rep. Harrell's name was listed on this blog as having not responded to the petition. They had, in fact, replied to an email sent to them on January 9th by one of our more enthusiastic supporters. Since that time have been researching our issue.

We had a good conversation with Rep. Harrell. He seems down to earth and wants to do what is right for all concerned parties. He suggested that we get together to talk and offered several different alternatives for this conversation. He calls one of these a "Community Conversation". This is an informal meeting that takes place on a Saturday and can last for several hours. We are going to accept his invitation and will let all of you know when it is going to take place.

We thank Rep. Harrell for his response and anticipate his active participation in helping us satisfy the goals stated in our petition.

Correction To Yesterday's Post

We made a mistake yesterday when we reported that Rep. Grier Martin had not replied to our original mailing of the petition. In fact he replied last Saturday and informs us that he supports this effort and is a runner who uses the park frequently.

It is our hope that Rep Martin and his colleagues will act soon to address our issues.

Waiting For Reps' Replies

It has been ten days since the signed petition was sent to the state Representatives from this area. We have received several replies, most indicating they've made contact with DOT and DENR. We thanked them for their replies and are anxiously waiting for additional feedback. As indicated in a prior blog some positive feedback has been received.

Unfortunately not all representatives have replied/acknowledged receipt of the petition and yesterday we resent the petition to them. Here is a list of those reps that have failed to reply. Their email address is included just in case you want to voice your opinion to them.

Dan Blue danb@ncleg.net
Linda Coleman lindac@ncleg.net
Nelson Dollar nelsond@ncleg.net
Paul Stam pauls@ncleg.net
Vernon Malone vernonm@ncleg.net
Marilyn Avila marilyna@ncleg.net

We, also, sent the petition to several Raleigh City Council Members. A couple replied. We weren't sure they could do anything for us, but, decided to copy them anyway. Here is Philip R. Isley's reply:

I’ve been told by the city that we’ve exhausted our remedies for this situation. We have tried to get the state to modify their plans for parking (or lack thereof) to no avail. I’ll try to get up with some of our local delegation in the NC Legislature to discuss this with them. Unfortunately, the city is not able to do anything about this. Like many things in Raleigh, the State just does not care how actions affect this city.

We think Mr. Isley deserves our thanks for his effort.

This coming week the Committee will follow up with the Representatives who have contacted DOT and DENR for a progress report.

There are more than 1300 signatures on the petition. Thanks for your support.

Positive Feedback From Your Reps

Today we received some good news from several of the Congress people who were sent the petition. Representative Jennifer Weiss, Representative Deborah K. Ross and Senator Janet Cowell held a meeting and presented your concerns to the DOT and DENR. Here is what Representative Weiss wrote to us:

Thank you again for expressing your concern about access to Umstead Park. Sen. Cowell, Rep. Ross and I met with DENR and DOT today to share your concerns and to talk about ways to increase access to the Park. We have asked DENR to have a public process in connection with a General Management Review of the Park Masterplan and to engage the Park Citizen Advisory Committee and the community in looking at ways to address the desire of park users to preserve the park and increase access to it. We will provide you with additional information in the future.

Regards,

Jennifer Weiss, NC House 35

So we are beginning to be heard.

We'll get information on the General Management Review of the Park Masterplan and the Park Advisory Committee and post it on this blog. If anyone reading this blog has information on the above please email us at access_umstead@yahoo.com or post your comments here.

We also heard from Representative Neal Hunt today who writes that he has contacted DOT and the State Parks and is waiting for their response.

Senator Richard Stevens wrote us today to say that he hopes a parking solution can be found and he will be in contact with the state departments responsible for providing that solution.

On the downside, there are still several Congress people who have not acknowledged receipt of the petition. We'll be writing to them again to ask for their feedback and keep you posted on our progress.

Please continue to publicize our cause. To be successful we must exert thoughtful, considerate and constant pressure. Thanks for your support!

Petitions Delivered...Little Feedback So Far

The petitions were delivered to various Representatives and others last Thursday and now we wait. So far the number of replies received is disappointing. Although some of you have received individual replies we have heard from only two Reps; Deborah K. Ross and Jennifer Weiss. Others heard from include Mayor Harold Weinbrecht of Cary and Raleigh Council members Rodger Koopman and Philip Isley.

We hope that this lack of feedback is due to the Martin Luther King holiday. If this is the case, feedback should increase significantly today.

On a more upbeat note 1298 people have signed our petition and Joe Miller of the New & Observer discussed our cause and petition in a short column in Sunday's newspaper.

More news to follow.

Thanks for your continued support!

Signed Petition Sent To Your Representatives

The following letter accompanied the signatures and comments from our petition:

The Access Umstead Committee was formed in response to strong concerns voiced by many Umstead State Park users about the continued loss of safe, convenient access to the park after the elimination of parking at the Reedy Creek Road and Graylyn Drive entrances. With plans to pave Old Reedy Creek Road, its future as an access is deemed uncertain at best. Many Triangle residents feel that their viewpoints went unrepresented as these decisions were being made and that their needs were not considered as these plans moved forward.

We provided an on-line petition as a forum for the public to voice their concerns about the impact that this restricted access to Umstead has had on the local community. In less than a week, the petition, which can be found at www.thepetitionsite.com/petition/609803273, has enabled more than 1100 individuals to voice their concerns about the impact that the restricted access has had on their lives. Most have expressed the need for a reasonable solution for safe, convenient access to the park with restored parking at the Reedy Creek Road and Graylyn Drive entrances and preserved parking at the Old Reedy Creek Road entrance.

Please take the time to review the comments in this petition to learn how residents feel about this issue. They feel ignored and unrepresented and are looking to their elected officials to enable a solution allowing greater access to Umstead in the near future. We look forward to your efforts toward a common sense resolution to this issue and know that the people will remember those representatives who have made a difference.

Access Umstead Committee

Margaret Cooper

Carlton B Cooper Jr

Gary Baum

Paul Fisher

We believe that this signed petition makes a strong case to our elected representatives that something must be done to provide safe and convenient access to Umstead State Park.

We expect to hear something soon from the representatives who received the petition. We will provide you with their feedback as we receive it.

Thank you all for your support!