38

opinion.

Herald & Lantern 15 April 81

Saturday Landfill Closings Not a good idea

The Borough of Wildwood Crest, which has been operating 'the Smith's Landfill on S. Bayshore Rd. in West Cape May since late 1977, is seeking permission to close the Only landfill In south Cape May County On Saturdays except during the three summer months. The Crest is also seeking permission from the state feoard of Public Utility Copimissioners to shut the landfill down on some 16 legal holidays throughout the year. The landfill has for years served private haulers and the general public in Cape May. West Cape May, Cape May Point and portions of Lower Township Now it serves as the landfill for •refuse and garbage from Wildwood Crest as

well

TIIK CLOSEST OTHER LANDFILL to homeowners and residents of this area in the southern portion of Cape May county is on Indian Trail several miles north in Middle

idea from the public’s standpoint jo have Smith's Landfill closed on the one day of the week in the spring and fall when many property owners are trying to open or close their

homes for the season.

Closing Smith’s Landfill on Saturday’s would deprive countless propertyowners of a convdnient place to haul yard debris and accumulated clutter frord* inside their homes. The result would be increased roadside litter, caused either by errant propertyowners unable to get to the landfill, or by-wind and animals which would have their ways with refuse placed at curbside and awaiting pickup by private haulers during the Week. Until the day comes-and we hope it’s not too many more years—when there is a regionalized system for solid waste disposal, government should do all it can to ease the growing pains that come with increased year-round

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ownship It would not'seem to be a very good and seasonal population and its attendant

Another Case of DOT’s Bjid Timing The State is about to embark on another crossing-project was Supposed to have gotten THE QUESTION

"I Gol This Groat Idoa How To Moho A lot Ot Money! First We Get The Notional Enquirer To Write This Story About Us..."

need for service—not the least of which is

trash and garbage disposal.

■ transportation project whose timing is truly as unreasonable as it is unseasonable Last June a state-sponsored railroad crossing project closed down one of the two main arteries between the mainland and Cape May as the summer season was underway. This month, the state Dept, of Transportation may

well be up to the same.

LAST SPRING’S WORK involved installation of a new jand largely unnecessary) crossing light system for a rail siding over Bayshore Rd. at the entrance to West Cape May. (The siding serves the magnesite plant which seems to be shut down more than it’s on line'' Even when it is operating, the plant isn’t busy enough to justify closing off a,main roadway for a week or more in season.) And the

reader's forum

/•Mora fo th» editor

underway on Memorial Day weekend! THE LATEST WORK involves the long, long awaited revamping of the Ocean Hiway and Rt. 109 approach to the canal bridge between Cold Spring and Cape May. The intersection has been a death trap for years, and finally last year the state DOT got its plans and federal funding together — after a federal money delay. The project was put out to bid, and last November the word was Work would

.be completed>by this May.

Last weeks word from DOT was that the

of rechanneling, stop now has a June 5 com-

$300,000-plus

lights and landscaping

pletion date, and the latest report also noted that both DOT and the contractor who will do the actual work weren’t at liberty to say if there would be any traffic tie-ups since the work and the new season will be getting under-

way simultaneously.

Trip To Casino Is Nightmare

Rv I’alrit in Ann Callinan % I wish to express my feel inns about ttie traumatic experience our group had in Atlantic City on March 30 I am president of St Ann's PTA. which spon sored our first casino trip to the Brighton Hotel Casino Upon arrival we were told to lx- at the bus stop around 11:45 p.m for departure at midnight We arrived to find no buses

Upon questioning several persons, we were told the four buses of Five Mile Beach Co had been towed and impounded • There were 167 passengers, half of them senior citizens. Casino personnel, upon our arrival, had spoken to the bus drivers, and told them where to park, and they followed directions, only tb find that the lot they parked in was no longer available to casino parking. As we understand, the Brighton didn’t know this

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had taken place until last night, when our buses were towed THE DRIVERS OF Five Mile Beach Company were very courteous and of course, very apologetic. At this point, the only one to blame would be the City of Atlantic City. The towing’ company (Shore Towing) would not release the buses until $675 was paid. The owner of the bus line had to drive up from Wildwood to Atlantic City at l a m. to bring payment. Upon his arrival he found that his check was not acceptable; therefore the Brighton had to take his check, and then pay the towing company After payment was made, they found three buses were operable, and the other was not They had to call Wildwood and send another bus to Atlantic City to pickup the remaining 44 passengers By this time it was 3 a m. THE CITY OF ATLANTIC CITY did not show any consideration for its neighboring municipality, and the Brighton Casino

employees were totally non-acconTmodating.' Some of the ladies wanted to sit in the downstairs lobby, and -.were told they could not. We were never offered any hospitality, but were told to wait on the third floor in a bus lounge area. If it wasn’t for our bus group that evening, the casino would have had very little business. I feel the casino should have taken more of a concern in this matter, since it was their fault the bus drivers parked where they did. The Five Mile Beach Co. bus drivers were very pa’tient, considerate and calm throughout the entire episode. We hope that they do not have to pay tlie sum out of their salary, and that their employer would commend them on the way they represented Wildwood and their company. In closing, let me say "Wildwood does not need Atlantic City but Atlantic City needs Wildwood." Patricia Ann Callinan is a resident of Wildwood Crest.

Editorial Profound

By Theodore II. Johnson The editorial in the April 8 edition, "There was an Election Tuesday-Honest!" is the most profoundly honest article that I have read in my 24 years as an educator. What insight! Thank you for printing it.

Theodore Johnson. Ed.D., in Middle Township.

is superintendent of Schools

REMAINING is will

thousands of motorists from parts north be inconvenienced as they head into Cape May, or the Wildwoods via the Crest, between now and

early June?

But the underlying question is why does the state seemingly insist on-improving transportation facilities in these parts while also prov-

ing their inconsideration thru poor timing?

This seems to be yet another example of the State’s inability to comprehend the differences that are inherent in a resort area — where the economy is inextricably tied to the seasons and any interruptions often prove as

costly as they surely are annoying.

4 The Herald & Lantern

British Seagull 387 Peace Walk

by Ima Byrd

The birds are worried about the politics of humans Everything humans do affects birds and other living things. The only problem" is that humans seem to have tJRal'control of the situation and there isn’t much that we

can do about it.

Actually we’ve been overjoyed that there are budget cuts and a group of birds intend to thank Middle Township officials personally for dropping the spray program. I guess, sometimes, it takes a belt-tight budget to get people moving in the right direction. I guess depression has its

good side.

BIRDS, BY NATURE, are peace loving and this thing in El Salvador has us really worried. We get all sorts of reports direct from the World Bird Watch Commission (WBWC) and they say American advisqrs and dollors are going to soup up the military in El Salvador — no two wings about it. The birds down there are moving out because they know what's happening. There are no Viet Nam birds left to speak of and El Salvador birds aren’t waiting to find out if Agent Orange or Agent Blue is toxic. They’re not taking any chances, they’re getting out. MEMBERS OF THE WBWC have asked birds all over the world to hold a j>eace march in protest of the United States involvement in El Salvador. On May 3. all over the world, peace-loving birds will give up flying for a day. and march. The seagulls are organizing the birds on the East Coast and May 3 we’ll be out on the beaches in force, in a Show of unity for peace The WBWC figures that maybe if we just show the world that there are some concerned birds out there, it could * change the thinking in Washington. It's worth a try. and what do we have to lose?

Everything!

YOU SEE. IT ISN’T just El Salvador that has the commission concerned. It’s all that money for defense, those - billions and billions of dollars to build overkill over and over again. It just doesn’t make sense, except to the Pen tagon or the industries involved in war-making. Now just in case there are some humafis out there who want to join us, we d be honored to have your company. Maybe churches could hold their services on the beaches that day, have a hymn sing of love and brotherhood. It's sure worth a try jl. MAYBE THEN. MAY 3 - eyeryjH^ would become known as Peace Day. A holiday for pealr— what a grand idea! After all. you mortals have days set aside to honor everything else. You honor the dead* wars, presidents — why not a day for the living, for peace? Let’s make May 3 a day where positive forces of strength and prayer will gather for peace, let's make it a day to remember It’s long overdue. See you at the beach May 3. bring another bird, huh? NEXT WEEK: The Midnight Gull.