Public Safety won’t let us stop and unload in front of Island House because there is a fire hydrant there, but they do not seem to have any problem parking there all day long or using up what few parking spaces we have when they have a whole area left empty for them to park. (See photo, taken May 7 at 1:30 p.m.).

I wish to remain anonymous because someone has been keying my car.

Name Withheld 

For some time, I have been meaning to write a letter regarding the condition of the seawall fencing. While the bulk of the Island’s fencing is in decent repair, the stretch from the Octagon Park pier to the lighthouse is in deplorable condition; I have counted no fewer than 12 fence panels either partially or completely collapsed.

Children playing by the river have nearly had their feet crushed by falling panels when the supporting pipes snapped; the resulting gaps also invite kids to explore the other side. They are an accident waiting to happen. Someone has helpfully placed yellow safety tape on the worst spot – directly opposite the Octagon playground – but nothing more has been done for some time.

Serendipity is an interesting thing. This morning I was walking by the lighthouse, double-checking my count of damaged areas, when up rolls a caravan of muckety-mucks and congresscritters to have a presser about... the seawall!

After the gladhanding was over, I walked up to Steve Shane and his Financial Officer (sorry, I didn’t catch the last name) and asked if the work discussed was just for the barge-damaged area, or for more general work, and told him of my concerns. Mr. Shane asked me to send him a letter detailing the problem, and indicated that he would try and see that the fence is fixed as soon as possible, perhaps in concert with the repair of the barge damage.

Mr. Shane was quite approachable and attentive, and stressed that if residents see anything wrong, to let him know in writing and he would look into it. Of course, all members of government say that, but it looks like we may have some concrete proof in the offing this summer.

Craig Koon 

To the Editor:

Your report on environmental green at the Octagon Park Apartments (May 5) was, in the opinion of many of us who live here, more a representation of what the artichect/builder hoped for than what he actually achieved. While your reporter was happy to present data as given by the builder’s representative, she seems unaware of the conflicts with reality.

A trivial example can be found in something every resident of Roosevelt Island knows: The tennis courts are public, they are not "ours." There were many such misrepresentations (or shadings of fact) that people outside our complex would not know. They range from the trivial to the gross.

None of this would be terribly important, were it not for the fact that your glowing story will be used (I suppose) by the landlord to promote the building to prospective tenants who will know no better. Many of those prospects are diplomats with deep pockets and minimal need to respect a budget. Our rate hikes have already created something of an exodus by working people. Those well-funded individuals who find that some of the "green" features don’t work so well will be able to move out at the expense of the taxpayers of their respective countries, even if that includes a penalty for breaking a lease.

A well-oiled free market favors a lot of trial and error – and its consequences – over an endless web of safety nets supervised by an army of civil servants. I, for one, subscribe to that system. But please, a fairy-tale fabrication of environmental friendliness – albeit rooted in good intentions – papers over the fact that people are getting pretty bruised over here. The problem will stabilize only when all the tenants are rich enough to afford whatever the market will bear, and sufficiently insensitive to disregard the discrepancy between the goals of environmentalism and what is realized.

Editor’s note: The writer, who represents his building on the Residents Association Common Council, is correct in pointing out that the Octagon Park tennis courts are not exclusive to Octagon Park residents. The story was intended only to describe the "green" elements of the development, not as a comprehensive examination of its faults, rent levels, or turnover.