As your representatives, we must be entirely sure of our facts before we make either serious charges against others or approach you to support us, whether financially or otherwise.

The RIRA Planning Committee discovered, and then confirmed, material facts on the Southtown development regarding parkland we believe will eventually lead to a solution that the entire community can support.  The discovery of the pertinent information that has led to our position took place on January 5, 2000.  Much exhaustive effort has since gone into verifying and supporting the facts that we are told will eventually allow us to succeed.

Until that discovery was made, no group had made any verifiable claim that the Southtown plan in any way violated the GDP, and no one had been able to produce any evidence that the Southtown boundaries were different than they had been when they were mapped many successive times since 1969.

The Southtown maps that were given to the developers by RIOC have been followed exactly in the plans they have presented to the community.

The discussions that will now take place with RIOC will be handled by RIRA's legal representatives, de Forest & Duer, one of the most prestigious land use firms in the country, and one that your contributions to RIRA's Legal Defense Fund have allowed us to afford.

As we have said to you in the past, we may have to come to you for further support on this issue.  We will make every effort to avoid any cost, but we expect your quick support when we can justify the expense to you.  If and when RIOC refuses to comply with the GDP, and we must go to court, the decision to do so will lie truly in your hands through the needed contributions.

We have been advised by our lawyers not to disclose the details of our claims until they are presented in detail, lawyer to lawyer, to those who have the power to act on the information.  Not only is this the responsible way to proceed, it is the courteous way to proceed.  It may lack the drama of other methods, but it is also most likely to be the method that saves the day.

For the record, the following points represent RIRA's position on Southtown and Parkland.  Only time will demonstrate who is correct in this matter and what will come of it, but there is every indication that we will once again succeed.

1. It is our premise that we cannot knowingly permit violation of the General Development Plan (GDP) at any time regarding the development of Roosevelt Island, particularly as regards encroachment onto land designated as Open Space Parkland in the General Development Plan.
2. Separately, it is our position that we cannot support encroachment onto land designated for development by the GDP, nor can we sue to obtain such land for additional Open Space Parkland, other than those areas so designated by the GDP.
3. It continues to be our position that the development of Southtown is imperative for the financial survival of Roosevelt Island, and we recognize that the development itself is mandated by the GDP.
4. It is our belief that the developers, Related Companies/Hudson Company, complied with every guideline that they have been given by RIOC.
5. It is our position that there is clear and compelling evidence of violation of the terms of the GDP on the part of RIOC.
6. It is further our position that there is clear and compelling evidence of our claim which has not been raised in any other suit.
7. It is our position that we would prefer not to litigate this matter, but we realize that RIRA will be compelled do so if RIOC does not comply with the GDP.
8. It is our position that we wish to proceed with responsible discussion with the State to resolve any non-compliance in a manner designed to have minimal and acceptable cost and time impact on the community, the developers, RIOC and the State and indeed all other interested parties.
9. It is, and has always been, RIRA's position that compliance with the GDP is non-negotiable.
10. It is our position that it is in the community's interest to proceed with these discussions since compliance with the GDP will result in a greater area of Open Space Parkland than in the development as it is now planned.