Riverside Park best left for public to enjoy

Please City Council members, don't sell Riverside Park to Penford. What good does a ball diamond and skatepark in another area of town do for the little kids in the neighborhood who use the park? All these people who are writing in to tell the council to sell the park and create jobs have no idea how many people really use that park in the summer. Is Penford willing to build a small park in the area to take its place?

There is no guarantee that anything Penford does with the property will create jobs. Anyone who has ever worked in a factory knows how automation has eliminated jobs in the past.

I, for one, don't think that's a risk worth taking the park away from the kids. And to all you folks who like to go to Riverside Park on the Fourth of July to have a picnic and watch the fireworks, don't assume Penford will let you use their property to do that. Contact the council members and ask them not to sell the park.

Rita Pechora

Cedar Rapids