John Hammond said Newsday was wrong when the story written by Bill Bleyer gave the impression that the TR Museum being located in Oyster Bay's Firemen's Field is a done deal. Mr. Hammond, the Oyster Bay Town Historian and the historian of the Matinecock Historical Society, said the only thing agreed upon to date is the Memorandum of Understanding to work toward a more formalized agreement that should be ready in six months after it undergoes the town's review process.

Mr. Hammond made the comment about Newsday at a meeting of the Oyster Bay Chamber of Commerce hosted by the Matinecock Lodge on Oct. 18. Added to Mr. Hammond's credits is that he was the chair for the Theodore Roosevelt Association to bring the proposed TR Museum to Oyster Bay.

He said that at the 2006 TRA annual meeting in Atlanta, the trustees agreed that they would like a TR museum and their goal was to find a site before the next meeting on Oct. 17-28 in Boston. Atlanta is also the home of the Atlanta Historical Society (AHS), then headed by Jim Bruns, the new TRA president. Mr. Bruns served as AHS president and CEO from 2003 to 2007. His oversight included the Atlanta History Center, located on a 33-acre campus in Buckhead, including two historic houses, a museum building, and a separate archives center; and the Margaret Mitchell House and Museum, located in Midtown Atlanta on two acres, including a historic house, separate visitors' center, and museum building. He completed the raising of $10.7 million for a new Centennial Olympic Games Museum wing, which includes a changing exhibition gallery for hosting "blockbuster" exhibitions.

Mr. Bruns organized the initial public display of the papers of the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., at the Atlanta History Center following the purchase of the collection of over 10,000 items by a group of businesses and individuals from Atlanta for $32 million.

He increased the number of the Historical Society's properties by acquiring the Margaret Mitchell House and Museum with endowment. He completely restored all of the Society's historic properties: restored the Swan House, a 1920s Atlanta mansion; the Margaret Mitchell House and the Tullie Smith Farm. [Mr. Bruns is no new-comer to fund raising.]

Mr. Hammond said, "They worked out an agreement and he became the new TRA president. The next step was to decide where the museum would be." Originally the executive committee thought it should be in Washington, D.C., a national location. They appointed three committees. One was chaired by a retired admiral. Mr. Hammond was appointed chairman of the Oyster Bay advocacy group.

"It was quite a task but I got solid support from Mike Rich and Roger Bahnik. Mike Rich said Firemen's Field would be a good location and we pitched it to the TRA and received their suggestion - to see if it was possible. The TRA needed a commitment. We went to the town and they were enthusiastic. Both sides realized there were many problems to overcome," said Mr. Hammond. The town and the TRA signed a Memorandum of Understanding.

"There are already negative voices heard. There are some good points that have been brought up. The TOB and the TRA are responsive to those concerns. My role with the committee is done. The TRA agreed on the site," he said he was surprised when the choice was announced. "Washington was considered a shoe-in," he said.

He added, "So the TRA and the TOB with input from business people in Oyster Bay agreed. If they didn't want it it wouldn't be here. We've heard from some who don't want it."

Mr. Hammond said they want to let people know what is being considered and added if it isn't wanted: "If not, it's not going to happen."

One of the masons asked about Firemen's Field saying the firefighters need it for training. "That has to be addressed and it is part of the MU and the firemen will not be hurled out," said Mr. Hammond.

Another speaker said Friends of the Bay is worried about the water quality. Mr. Hammond said that TRA President Jim Bruns is looking into such issues and had said it will be a "green" building. "He said they will use rainwater for the toilet flushing system. That was a concern, the flushing," Mr. Hammond said.

He acknowledged that there were questions about the Oyster Festival rides and St. Rocco's, the height of the building and the parking. "There will be more parking than is there now," said Mr. Hammond. "And it will be unrestricted parking and there will be no charge for parking. Mr. Bruns is working with Senator Schumer on the trains. There may be a jitney to Sagamore Hill. And they realize there are things they haven't thought of yet," he added.

Mr. Hammond said the height of the building will conform to the town limit of 35 feet. They will use the town laws as they exist. The building, he said, would be between 80,000 to 100,000 sq. ft. and will contain a museum, auditorium, archives and the TRA offices.

Jon McEvoy, Oyster Bay Chamber of Commerce secretary asked about the funding for the project.

Mr. Hammond said, "The TRA has had excellent fund raisers in the past. They bought Sagamore Hill and gave it to the nation. They gave TR's ranch in the Dakotas to the people as well as the Roosevelt Island site in Washington, D.C. But this might be tough. It might cost $60 million or $80 million. Until they do the architectural plans we can't say."

According to the TRA website, ever since 1934 when the Theodore Roosevelt National Park was created as first a state park and then in 1947 a national park, the objective was always to include the entirety of TR's original Elkhorn Ranch. Currently, the federal government is willing to purchase a viewshed across the Little Missouri River as seen by TR as he sat on the veranda of his Elkhorn Ranch. They will pay the appraisal value of $4.8 million but need an additional $500,000 of which half must be made up by the private sector. According to their website this has not happened. The closing date was April 25, 2007. TRA President Bruns recently said they are getting close to the needed amount.

Oyster Bay Chamber of Commerce President Alex Gallego said he was invited to Mill-Max Mfg. at a meeting with TRA President Jim Bruns, Norm Parsons, Roger Bahnik and several civic and business leaders. He asked about the infrastructure needed to support the museum adding, "We live in a beautiful town that can use a facelift." Mr. Gallego asked if there are special grants that would be available for the project.

Mr. Hammond said there are committees working on the traffic and environmental studies that are under way, although he is not involved with them.

Rob Brusca asked if Sagamore Hill had been considered as a site. Mr. Hammond said the recent general management plan for Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, operated by the National Park Service, had public input. There were four plans offered and the third one was chosen.

As for having the TR museum there, Mr. Hammond said they were opposed to changing the footprint of the site.

Amy Verone talked to this newspaper about the decision.

Sagamore Hill is currently without a superintendent. Gary Marshal left Wednesday, Oct. 24 for a new site. He will be at the Edison National Historic Site in West Orange, NJ, the home and laboratory of Thomas Alva Edison.

In his absence Amy Verone, Chief Cultural Resource ("I get to do a bit of everything," she said) explained the management plan. She said, "Every (national) park is supposed to do a periodic review asking: what are we doing; what should we do; the condition of the resource; public use; how to best service the public: and pick an option. It's an internal process with study within the staff and input from the community and partner groups and a larger review by the regional office and then it goes to the Washington office for review.

"The fourth choice was very ambitious with a lot of new construction; a shuttle service with a visitor center in Oyster Bay." She said it was the impact of the plan, not so much the cost that defeated it. She said, "To build a brand new visitors center would change the landscape from when TR was here. It is located in an area that is now natural and we would have lost woods. Also it would have been too close to neighbors. It was the big, big picture version.

"The first alternative was to keep going as we are. The alternatives were graded and the option selected was more reasonable. It is protecting the integrity of the site by masking any new construction and preserving, and in some areas reclaiming, resources from when TR lived here. He had a farm but we don't farm and are not planning to farm, but we could re-establish the fields just south of the house," she said.

She said there were issues about having the TR Museum at Sagamore Hill. "The scale of the building and the support services needed - the roads and parking lots and such. We would have had to sacrifice the cultural landscape to accommodate the building. And it appears they wanted to be downtown to be in the center of things and more easily accessible. I anticipate our working closely with them. It would be nice to have a sort of 'sister' in the neighborhood - and to coordinate our activities and programs," she said.

As for comparison, Sagamore Hill is about 83 acres. The mansion is roughly 7,200 square feet; the Old Orchard Museum roughly 3,000 square feet. The parking lot at Sagamore Hill holds about 110 cars. It has about 50,000 to 60,000 visitors per year. Presently Sagamore Hill is closed Monday and Tuesdays during the winter months.

[Therefore, Sagamore Hill at about 10,000 sq. ft. attracts about 55,000 visitors a year. The proposed TR Museum would be between 80,000 and 100,000 sq. ft. What would the visitor projection amount be?]

Note: Jim Bruns was scheduled to speak at the Main Street Association meeting on Oct. 30. It will be reported on in the Nov. 8 issue of this newspaper.