A Quick Update on Marsden, and Dueling Narratives About the Support of One Southampton Town Councilman

Sag Harbor Superintendent Jeff Nichols gave a brief update Monday night on the status of the school’s effort to acquire property on nearby Marsden Street.

Voters authorized the district to access capital reserve funds to partially fund the purchase of the property, which would eventually be developed into an athletic field, on November 3. The next step is to find out whether or not the Southampton Town Board will approve the use of money from the Community Preservation Fund to cover the cost of the rest of the purchase price.

Nichols said the school district is still waiting for the Town Board to schedule a public hearing on the matter; a vote on whether or not to authorize the use of CPF money would follow that public hearing at a subsequent meeting.

“We were initially told that the hearing would happen in October, but, obviously, that didn’t happen,” Nichols said. “We can’t move forward until it does.”

Board member Alex Kriegsman stated at the meeting that Southampton Town Councilman Tommy John Schiavoni “has said he’s committed to supporting this.”

But when reached via text message on Tuesday morning, Schiavoni said, “Whoever said that I’m in full support of the Marsden project did not get it from me. I have concerns about the application that’s pending in front of us, and I have not given my support to that application as it stands today.”

Alex Kriegsman expanded on his statements Tuesday morning, explaining why he made the statement that Schiavoni was in support of the project.

“He came to my office and congratulated me following the Town Board vote to authorize [former CPF program manager] Lisa Kombrick to send out the offer letter in June,” Kriegsman said. “Tommy John came to my office, he congratulated me, and told me that, as a Pierson alum, he would like to be at the meeting when this was finalized.”

A copy of the offer letter from the Town of Southampton CPF, addressed to Saunders Real Estate agent Lori MacGarva, is on the Sag Harbor School District website. Dated June 24, and signed by Kombrick, the letter states that she “has been authorized by the Town Board of the Town of Southampton to make an offer for the above referenced properties in the amount of six million dollars.”

The letter continues: “This offer is to be supplemented with an additional contribution amount from the Sag Harbor Union Free School District. If your client chooses to accept this offer, please contact us so that we may draft the contract.”