Letters

With reference to the Bel-Aire Cove Motel property: If you build it (a park), they will come, especially if they can launch stand-up paddleboards and kayaks from a clean beach or from a dock made for that purpose. I think it should make it simple and beautiful to keep the cost down.

A parking lot should be on the north end of the property, close to the road, to minimize blacktop use, or use gravel. The rest of the property can be lawn with picnic tables near the beach. A gazebo over some tables is a good idea. There should be restrooms on one side of the south end, or, to keep costs down, rent three portable toilets from May through October. One outside shower with a foot-rinsing faucet near the bottom is a good idea. It can have only cold water; paddlers are rugged people.

Landscape this park beautifully — make it a colorful showplace. Steve at Hampton Garden Center can help you. Ask him to plan it to look like his property near the road, or like Macy’s landscaping surrounding the big lawn, or Bridge Gardens in Bridgehampton. The initial expense might be high, but if you use perennial plants and shrubs, everything will come back in subsequent springs and summers. Plant allium bulbs — the big purple flowers are a knockout. A few shade trees are a good idea, especially ones where the tops spread out. Red maples are beautiful. There is tons of free mulch at the landfill.

A few abstract sculptures would be nice. Artists might even donate them or lend them to the park to get exposure for their work. You could ask for donations of planters or material to use to build planters.

The view from this property is breathtaking: Penny Road and Shinnecock Bay with boats and kayaks and stand-up paddleboards gliding by.

Jim Dreeben

Hampton Bays