LETTERS

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Don’t forget the arts
As Congress considers spending to stimulate the economic recovery, the arts and culture sector must be included. The arts are essential to the health and vitality of our communities. They enhance community development, spur urban renewal, attract new businesses, draw tourism dollars and create an environment that attracts skilled, educated workers and builds a robust 21st century workforce.

Nonprofit arts organizations are proud members of the business community — employing people locally, purchasing goods and services within the community and involved in the marketing and promotion of their cities. In fact, there are more full-time jobs supported by the nonprofit arts than are in accounting, public safety officers, even lawyers and just slightly fewer than elementary school teachers.

According to Americans for the Arts, a $50 million investment to the National Endowment for the Arts will provide critical funding to save 14,422 jobs from being lost. This is based on the ability of the NEA to leverage $7 in additional support through local, state and private donations, for every $1 in NEA support.

There are approximately 100,000 nonprofit arts organizations, which spend $63.1 billion annually. Without an economic stimulus for the nonprofit arts industry, experts expect about 10 percent of these organizations to shut their doors in 2009 — a loss of 260,000 jobs. We are hopeful that Congress and the new administration support investment in the arts.

Marty Longo Blue Island, Ill.

Save water

I would like to congratulate the city council for purchasing the gravel pits as a backup water source so that the Hunter Lake discussion can come to a merciful 40-year end. Having lived in two areas that were under drought alerts (Tampa in the 70s and Macon in the early 80s) I find it hard to believe that we have bought more water while we continue to throw it away. This is kind of like the fat little kid grabbing another kid’s lunch plate when he still hasn’t finished his own. The city council should mandate water conservation, from the leaky water distribution system, to low-flow showerheads, to low-flow toilets, there is so much that the city could do right now to conserve water. While they were at it, CWLP could shift over to dry bottom ash disposal and get in the IEPA’s good graces. The city council needs to come up with a plan to implement such water savings.

Doug Nicodemus Riverton

Speed no more

As a police officer in the Chicago suburbs, but with many ties to Springfield and central Illinois, I was drawn to George A.M. Heroux’s recent commentary Cops: Why we love ’em and hate ’em (Feb. 5). While I appreciate his involvement in an organization that assists victims of drunk driving crashes and their families, and am grateful he recognized and praised the work your local law enforcement community does, I must take issue with his unfair characterization of “part-time cops” in the “little cities and towns.” It seems Heroux was stopped and ticketed, and is now taking the officer to task as being petty or overly ambitious.

He also complains about officers who issue citations for “going 30 miles an hour in a 25-mile-an-hour zone.” Really? I always wonder about the claims people make about their tickets for “5 over the limit.” I categorize them with the claims of nearly every DUI I have arrested that they “only had two beers, officer. I swear!!” What people do not realize is the technology available to law enforcement to easily confirm or discredit such claims and, when confronted with the evidence, how often the story changes to, “Well, his radar did say I was 18 over....”

So, I am almost ready to call BS on his claim of “5 over” but I want to be fair to him, so I will say this: If Mr. Heroux was ticketed rather than warned for going 5 over the limit, as he implies, and he was polite, contrite and respectful to the officer, then it certainly seems a chickens**t ticket. Only he knows the full details of the interaction.

Now, Mr Heroux, go and speed no more.

Mike Wasilewski Naperville

Washington Park boathouse

Many people in and around Springfield have heard the news that an anonymous donation of $500,000 will result in the rebuilding of a boathouse that once sat on the shore of the Washington Park lagoon. A recently formed organization focused on conserving Washington Park, Friends of Washington Park Committee, is responsible for developing the construction plan and is in need of pictures ( interior and exterior ) and information about the boathouse.

We’ve located a few pictures of the boathouse in the Sangamon Valley Collection at Lincoln Library but would love additional photos.

The committee asks that anyone with historical information about the boathouse or who has interest in helping with the project contact our chairman, Doug Reynolds, at 553- 1329 or e-mail him at [email protected]. Photographs and documents can be mailed to Washington Park Botanical Garden, 1740 W. Fayette Ave.

Joe Coffey Friends of Washington Park Springfield