4 Photos
Community members at the Big Duck. CAROL MORAN
Chris Bean
Southampton Town superintendent of parks and recreation
Christine Fetten
Southampton Town officials and community members cut the ribbon on new public bathrooms near the iconic Big Duck in Flanders on Thursday afternoon.
The new facilities sit just west of the landmark, on the 35-acre Big Duck Ranch off Flanders Road, in a building that was last used some 25 years ago as a sandwich shop.
“Congratulations to the community,” Southampton Town Councilwoman Bridget Fleming said at the event, commending Flanders residents for their push to see the project finished. “You’ve been so tenacious and have worked so hard.”
The project, which was in the works for at least four years before Southampton Town finally got the ball rolling, was supported with funding from the Friends of the Big Duck, a local nonprofit, as well as the town and grants from Suffolk County. Chris Bean, the superintendent of parks and recreation for the town, said the project cost about $20,000, with about half of that being offset by donations from the Friends of the Big Duck over the past two years. He added that since town employees did most of the labor, there were no added costs.
Though Suffolk County owns the duck, the town took on the responsibility of installing the bathrooms; there is one bathroom for men and another for women. Mr. Bean said the bathrooms were a necessary addition at the park—portable facilities will no longer be needed during community events, like the annual holiday lighting ceremony in December.
The Big Duck was first constructed in 1931 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Friends of the Big Duck, which acts as the steward of the park, will be responsible for hiring a cleaning service to maintain the new facilities.
“Anyone that participated in any one of the events that we’ve held for the Big Duck, we want to thank you,” said Carl Iacone, a member of Friends of the Big Duck, who was in attendance for the ceremony.
