Letters

Another long, impassioned piece in support of the aquatic center claims its primary purpose and motivation for its leader is to teach local children to swim and be safe in our many bays and ocean waters [“Q&A: Dr. Josephine DeVincenzi On The Proposal By STAR For A New Pool Facility In Tuckahoe,” 27east.com, October 16].

See the brochure. Red Cross swimming lessons and lifeguard classes have been available for very reasonable fees throughout the East End for at least 57 years. My siblings and I attended them in Peconic Bay, near the canal. The final test was swimming in the canal. They were very effective.

For considerably less than $20 million, the program could likely be better marketed and perhaps expanded if needed to other locations? It should be worth a conversation with the town and the Red Cross.

Note that the authors of this plan, to meet criticism of traffic flow, say that the people who use the pool will be within 20 minutes of the pool. Sounds like this facility will serve the Village of Southampton, not the entire Town of Southampton.

Yes, the Community Preservation Fund helped rebuild the Sag Harbor Cinema — because it was a historic building, something specifically within the purview of the fund. The CPF is not a building fund for pools or for affordable housing. It is not a general tax fund. Open space. Land. Historic buildings. That’s exactly what it is for.

As pressure for housing increases, it is more needed than ever before.

Amy S. Paradise

Hampton Bays