Architect Joseph Reilly spoke enthusiastically on his vision of Theodore Roosevelt Park to a rapt audience at the Main Street Association's annual meeting held at the Doubleday Babcock Senior Center on Oct. 20. His view begins at the Oyster Bay Rail Road Museum located at the upper end of Audrey Avenue. Imagine the area being paved over and the small road to Maxwell Avenue closed. Imagine a walkway crossing the railroad tracks and heading diagonally toward the marina. The walkway would join the downtown area to the waterfront with trees, benches and historic antique lights on one side. On the other would be kiosks giving facts about TR to visitors as they walk along the path - like the Freedom Trail in Boston. Half way to the marina, hidden off the walk with trees and landscaping would be the carousel. (See his drawing of the site.)

"It is a magnificent carousel made with old artistry of solid carved wood, some horses are restored and some are original." Mr. Reilly, president of Reilly Associates added, "We have the ticket booth, we have the brass ring machine."

He said the project is about Main Street and the community taking back their town - and - taking back their park - and - connecting it to the waterfront. The park has three zones, the area by the baseball field and tennis courts, parking lot and boat launch is the A Zone. The B-Zone is the memorial zone and contains a very formal garden that ends in the flagpole. Hibachis and grills have "crept into this area" said Mr. Reilly. Zone C is less active, and has the picnic area and some playgrounds. That is where the proposed carousel would be located.

He said attempts have been made to solve some of the problems in the park. Trees were planted to stop people from playing soccer on the great lawn area. "They are going to grow big," warned Mr. Reilly. The formal gardens are flat, and don't have the feel of a garden, he said, but he hopes to add height to some of the areas to create a better visual impact.

Mr. Reilly said people would walk through the relocated park entrance gate and down the path and then can either go on the carousel or sit on benches and watch the people ride the horses "and the lion." The Nunley Carousel is three horses deep, he said. It is smaller than the one in Central Park, which is four horses deep, and finer than the carousel in Greenport which has metal and plastic horses. "This is the Cadillac of carousels," he said. The carousel is currently at the Nassau County Mitchel Field complex.

In talking about the carousel concept, MSA president Bill Sheeline credited Mike Rich and Jerritt Gluck as the driving forces behind the carousel concept and for getting, "Billy Joel, a local guy who cares about the town to be its honorary chairman. The Carousel Committee worked with the MSA Design Committee to create the current plan." David Lamb and Ellen Roché are the design committee co-chairs.

Mike Rich said the Carousel Committee will present their proposal first to the Theodore Roosevelt Association for approval. [Their board recently voted to allow a carousel to be placed in the park although the town's deed forbids it presently.] Next the plan would go to the Town of Oyster Bay Theodore Park Advisory Committee, chaired by Councilman Chris Caschignano and then on to the town for approval. The town is in charge of maintaining the park. At present there is no funding plan but the committee will be looking into that said Mr. Rich. "With the name of Billy Joel, as honorary chairman, we will be able to get a lot of support."

The key to the success of the proposal is the presence of a new police booth to be located at the far west end of the marina parking lot. The existing small building will be a public restroom facility, again, with proper landscaping. Recently, the Nassau County Police Commissioner's office, James H. Lawrence, Commissioner approved the removal of the South Street police booth, which has stood for many years in downtown Oyster Bay. Subsequently, Commissioner Lawrence also approved the reconstruction of a new police booth in Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park.

Mr. Reilly envisions the park returning to its former grandeur as a garden, with areas from the entrance to the flagpole again filled with tulips, daffodils and chrysanthemums in season. They might be maintained by garden clubs, he suggested.

Mr. Reilly's vision included moving the entrance of the park to the east so that it allows a person on the Derby-Hall Bandstand to have a line of sight down to the flagpole area. He envisions wrought iron gates and fountains added to the park.

"The first thing was to get the public excited with the project," said the presenters.

Dan Burden of Walkable Communities congratulated Oyster Bay for having the MSA team to carry through the ideas of revitalizing the downtown area. "You need the love and passion of people to carry it through." He showed slides of his journey through the United States helping communities improve. He centered his talk on how to make a great waterfront community. "You have a lot in place and you are putting eyes in the park to re-activate the place," he said.

Mr. Burden said everyone is concerned with the growth of traffic which increases by 25 percent every 10 years. "But, there is a way to put things where they belong, to collapse trips. Add parking, add trees, use narrow lanes for safety, make narrow intersections and add sidewalks," he said. There are five keys to the success of a place: security, convenience, efficiency, comfort and welcome. "What you are doing is important," he said.

He said it is important to plant trees and put up decorative fencing and gave an example of a merchant who took away a parking lot and turned it into a park outside his health food store, that now attracts visitors and customers.

Mr. Burden complimented the MSA for doing "One little project at a time." They have worked on the parking lot at Townsend Square, and the walkway between Audrey Avenue and West Main Street that is planted with trees; and the kiosks. He said creating a waterfront park is a great concept. He suggested Firemen's Field as a location for housing or a hotel that would be near the park. He predicted the success of the park renovation project would attract benefactors who want to add to a successful project.

Mr. Burden added a new concept in parking: back-in angle parking. It has been used in 200 to 400 blocks in Seattle and where used, when the width of the road is wide enough, it makes great sense. "Your trunk is where you want it to be. The kids leave the car and go back to the curb where they are safe. You can see what is happening when you drive away," he said.

Another great incentive to making a better area is using art. He showed examples where people created artistic bike racks and traffic control boxes that became maps of the area with a "you are here" arrow for orientation. Use color on park benches, he suggested.

Mr. Burden added, "Decide something at every meeting or paralysis rules the day!"