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To the Editor: 

It was very encouraging to read letters by Mayor Shirley Dean in support of playing fields (Forum, Aug. 28) and by windsurfer/kayaker Jim McGrath (Forum, Aug. 30) in support of water access. Finally, some voices of reason are being heard. 

But there is an interesting intersection of the sentiments expressed in the two letters that may not be immediately apparent: Water-borne recreation fulfills many of the same goals as playing fields, and can often do it more economically while serving a broader range of participants. Consider the cost of a single playing field: $2.2 million per field to develop and many tens of thousands every year to maintain. Compare to the cost of a dragon boat: $16,000 for a top-of-the-line model, and only a few thousand per year to maintain the support equipment. The surface of the water requires no grading, mowing, fencing or pest control. Both the field and the boat serve about 20 kids at a time. Similar economic advantages can be demonstrated to varying degrees for youth programs based on kayaks, windsurfers, rowing shells, small sailboats and outrigger canoes. 

Perhaps more important, water-based recreation offers new opportunities for the kind of young person who is not attracted to the culture of field sports. These kids are being bypassed by traditional school athletics programs, but their recreational needs are at least as acute. Boating in its various forms can open a new world of outdoor physical activity and team competition. 

Also lost on many park advocates is the relationship between non-motorized boating and environmental advocacy. These activities are a breeding ground for the future stewards of the Bay, and our shoreline will be in much better hands if we encourage, not limit, the ability of people to float on the waters of the Eastshore State Park rather than just look at them. This implies some structures, some docks, and some parking near the shoreline in various places – but it does not mean that the open space value or the natural setting of the park has to be significantly compromised. 

The Eastshore State Park is an urban waterfront, not a wilderness upland, and water access should be the defining theme. Let's not paint it with the wrong brush. 

Paul Kamen, 

Chairperson, Berkeley 

Waterfront Commission