Who's To Blame?

It’s important to be clear about two things.

First, when it comes to the proposal for new world-class public gardens at Agawam Park in Southampton Village — an idea pitched by John Paulson, Peter Marino and the Lake Agawam Conservancy, which now appears in danger of being withdrawn, something the village has kept from the public for well over a month — its fate will be decided solely by those proposing the $20 million gift to the village, and the mayor and village trustees. There are many other voices in the conversation, as there should be, but the final responsibility rests, and has always rested, primarily on village officials.

They have so far been strangely quiet, to the point where the proposal is dying on the vine. It’s appropriate for the village’s elected representatives to listen to input from all sides before making a decision on whether to move forward with the plan. But this group appears stuck in neutral, endlessly letting the debate continue without them, never providing leadership toward a real-world solution.

In the end, it’s not really that complicated: Does the village want a fully funded $20 million centerpiece that has the added benefit of helping to clean up Lake Agawam? Or is keeping Pond Lane open to cars too precious to lose?

Which brings us to the second point: What is holding up this project is Pond Lane, and a weird obsession with “preserving” it. In the end, it could be the reason the entire philanthropic effort falls apart.

Who knows why this is so important to Paulson, Marino and the conservancy; critics make dark insinuations about private benefits for the wealthy benefactors hidden in the Trojan horse, but no plausible, specific gain has ever been identified. Meanwhile, it seems to pass the smell test that Paulson, who lives nearby and has donated hundreds of millions of dollars for civic causes, and Marino, a talented landscape architect and art lover who is willing to donate his services to a village he has come to appreciate, and the conservancy, which exists to improve the lake’s quality, have no ulterior motives.

And if they do? Did Andrew Carnegie have a political goal of empowering the masses as his charitable Carnegie Corporation spent over $56 million to build 2,509 public libraries? Does it somehow undo the good that effort wrought?

The nonsensical arguments — Pond Lane is “beloved” because you can enjoy the lake from your car window as you drive past; Pond Lane is a crucial link in the village road system — should have been politely heard, and then village officials should have noted that a pedestrian and bike path has always been the long-term plan along that stretch, and a gorgeous new park would only help make it happen, and give it a purpose.

Ultimately, if the ambitious, generous public gardens proposal never comes to pass, the blame will land squarely at Village Hall and no place else.