Next Steps for Flint Park: Go or Slow?
by Judy Silberstein
(March 4, 2004) Flint Park was back on the
agenda at Larchmont’s Village Board meeting on March
1. The Flint Park playground group is anxious to go forward
with renovation plans that have been under consideration for
months. The board would like to move to the next stage in
its process for the field expansion project in another quadrant
of the park that has been under development for two years.
But there are forces calling for greater deliberation on both
projects.
A Master Plan for Flint Park?
One voice for a slowdown comes from Flint Park neighbor
David Levine who appeared before the board on February 23
and March 1 to make a case for an alternate configuration
for the fields and for preparing an overall Flint Park Master
Plan before undertaking expensive renovations in particular
plots of the park. He admitted that he had come late to the
conversation, but argued, “My initial Flint Park Master
Plan ideas would offer additional playing fields, additional
parking, and separation of park lands from automobiles, building
upon the good work that has been completed.”
“It’s a little late in the game to raise the
issue of a master plan for Flint Park,” said Trustee
Liz Feld. “All of Mr. Levine’s issues have been
raised and discussed over the past two years. She also pointed
out that February 27 was scheduled as the close of the public
comment period. Last week various groups involved with
park usage and planning came together to plot fundraising
strategies, including the possible raising of “hundreds
of thousands of dollars” by the sports leagues. Now
is the time to start fitting the project into the context
of the upcoming budget, Trustee Feld stressed.
Trustees Anne McAndrews and Mike Wiener were a bit more
encouraging to the concept of examining the interrelationship
of various park projects, particularly drainage in a muddy
spot near the proposed playground. But neither called for
a halt in order to conduct master planning. “We should,
perhaps, have a task force to examine the park as a whole
as we continue with the fundraising and plans for the fields
and playground,” suggested Trustee McAndrews.
“Flint Park is the pearl in the Larchmont’s
crown,” she said. “We don’t want to be
looking back in a couple of years and saying, ‘If only
we had looked more broadly at the whole park, we would have
done things differently.’ “
Playground to Go?
 Meanwhile,
the playground group is moving at a furious pace with its
fundraising, though the date for the “community
build” to erect the playground has been moved from
May to September. Designs are still being fine-tuned and
cannot be finalized without further input from the board
- in the way of approvals and funds. Playground Committee
Co-Chairs Brigid Brennan and Chris Verni provided updates
and made an appeal for further assurance of board support.(For
more design details,see: Flint Park Group Unveils
Final Recommendations.)
The group’s fundraising received a jumpstart from “Ironman” John
Steigerwald, who earned over $40,000 for participating in
a triathlon last year, and there is a "Rock
for the Park" going on this Saturday, March 6, plus a wine and cheese
party
planned for later this spring. Ultimately, what gets built
will depend, in part, on the success of the fundraising.
The mayor was out of town on a family matter, and the board
did not take a formal vote. However, the trustees reaffirmed
their commitment to completing the project. “We support
you completely and wish you well,” concluded Trustee
Feld, speaking in her role as deputy mayor.
“We are happy with the progress,” said Brigid
Brennan later, “and we are hoping over the next months
to firm up the village approval and their financial contribution.”
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