To: State Senator Adriano Espaillat and the other Northern Manhattan elected officials

Stand by Our Isham & Inwood Hill Parks Groups!

Tell our elected officials to honor their promise and act on the Baker Field CBA so that the money can be distributed to dedicated park groups and forward-thinking organizations that are working to improve our parks.

Why is this important?

The Northern Manhattan community was promised $300,000 in 2011 in association with Columbia University’s Baker Field expansion. The community is still waiting because SOME of our elected officials have been sitting on the issue and continually moving the goal post.

This only hurts the community.

As shown in DNAinfo's "3 Years Later, Uptown Groups Still Waiting for Funds Promised by Columbia" (http://goo.gl/l1lWR9), the money is currently at risk of disappearing into the Parks Department.

Our community is fortunate enough to have numerous neighborhood park groups and organizations whose projects and innovative programs improve the quality of life and make the parks more accessible to everyone. The money that was promised to the community should go to the community to support these groups and their efforts.

Conservancy North is committed to administering grant funds equitably and supporting the growing community of stakeholders who recognize the critical importance our blue-green public spaces have on health, education, and making Northern Manhattan a great place to live, visit, and work.

Please sign our petition urging our Northern Manhattan elected officials to stand by their commitment and sign the letter of unity that was requested by Columbia University in 2012 as the final condition for releasing the money.