Programs for local children, millions of private dollars spent in the public’s interest and increased access to Liberty State Park — they’re all reasons to amend the Liberty State Park Protection Act, according to a new petition circulating Jersey City.

But the New Jersey Sierra Club says the petition is a facade, an effort aimed to deceive the public.

A group called the Enhance Liberty State Park Coalition is reportedly distributing the petition in Jersey City to support changes to pending legislation that would allow for privatization on the public land — the exact possibility the proposed Liberty State Park Protection Act intends to eliminate.

It lists ways a “public-private partnership…on a very small portion” of the park land would benefit the public and mentions Caven Point Peninsula, a location Liberty National Golf Club has sought for its own expansion.

“What they leave out is that they want to take (22) acres of the park land, some of the most environmentally sensitive land … to expand their golf course,” New Jersey Sierra Club Director Jeff Tittel said.

The peninsula is home to migratory birds and boasts sweeping views of the Statue of Liberty and the New York skyline.

In 2018, the high-end Liberty National Golf Club applied to lease the beachy peninsula from the state and move three holes there. The plan also included the expansion of the PGA’s “First Tee” program for under-served urban youth at Liberty National.

The state Department of Environmental Protection denied the bid, but a lobbyist for the golf course recently advocated that the peninsula be excluded from the Liberty State Park Protection Act, which is awaiting a floor vote in the State House.

The group pushing the petitions has no website or social media presence, but a spokesman said it is backed by Liberty National and the NAACP New Jersey State Conference.

“(The coalition) has been collecting signatures from hundreds of Jersey City residents who support the idea of protecting the park, while also enhancing its value to the region,” said Chris Donnelly. “The coalition has the utmost respect for those who have fought for decades to protect Liberty State Park but believes it can be done in a manner that both protects and enhances the Park experience for visitors.”

A checkbox at the bottom of the petition allows one to opt-in to potentially assist the Enhance Liberty State Park Coalition in the future.

The state Department of Environmental Protection, which oversees Liberty State Park, declined to comment on the petition.

Tittel called the Enhance Liberty State Park Coalition a “green scam,” a group posing as a grassroots organization.

The petition makes no mention of the golf club or the previous proposal to build three holes on the land. It says the public-private partnership would channel millions of private dollars into the remediation of Caven Point Peninsula.

But Tittel said there is already designated funding for mitigating the contamination, adding that the public won’t support the coalition’s efforts.

“They know who they can’t trust and who they can trust, and some group that makes up a name to try to fool the public, I don’t think they’ll get away with,” he said. “People will stoop to new lows to push something they know the public is opposed to.”

Other groups, including the Friends of Liberty State Park and the NY/NJ Baykeeper have asserted themselves as voices on behalf of the park for years.

This week, they will meet with state Sen. Sandra Cunningham and officials from the golf course to discuss the legislation. Representatives from the Friends of Liberty State Park and the NJ/NY Baykeeper declined to comment because of that meeting.

“We’d be very happy to address these misrepresentations after an upcoming meeting with elected officials and the golf course representatives,” said Greg Remaud, CEO of the NJ/NY Baykeeper.