A historic Oyster Bay house still awaits its fate
Mill Pond House, one of the oldest buildings in Oyster Bay, needs a $1.3 million renovation. A Long Island nonprofit recently listed the town-owned building as an endangered historic structure. Credit: Danielle Silverman
For Mill Pond House, built in the early 18th century and among the oldest surviving buildings in Oyster Bay, the ravages of water damage, fire and time have taken a heavy toll.
In 2021, a contractor determined a renovation to the town-owned structure would cost $1.3 million.
Nearly three years later, there's no plan in place for moving forward as town officials say they're still looking for a private buyer who would agree to preserve the building.
Last month, the nonprofit Preservation Long Island placed the structure on its 2023 list of endangered historic places.
“The house is only going to take so much,” said Tara Cubie, the nonprofit's preservation director. “The clock is ticking.”
In 1976, the town designated the house, located at West Shore Road and West Main Street, as a landmark. In 2008, Oyster Bay bought the house and its 2-acre property from developer Charles Wang for $1.9 million.
In 2014, after two suspicious fires, town officials discussed saving the damaged structure by selling it to a private owner with restrictive covenants in place to guarantee it would be restored.
Nearly a decade later, no deal is in place.
Oyster Bay officials have “been in discussions with multiple interested parties thus far, and certainly welcome others,” town spokeswoman Marta Kane said this week.
The house is on land the Townsend family, one of the founding families of Oyster Bay, acquired in the 1600s. Esther Townsend, a prominent businesswoman known for a sloop-based trading venture, had the house built sometime before 1720 and its core remains intact, according to Preservation Long Island.
Town officials said fire-damaged parts of the building were reinforced after Nassau Suffolk Engineering & Architecture PLLC carried out a $248,400 contract in 2021 in which they investigated the state of the structure and came up with the restoration cost estimate.
Oyster Bay spokesman Brian Nevin said that without the intervention of the Supervisor Joseph Saladino's administration, “the building would have surely continued to succumb to the elements.”
He added: “Rather than ask taxpayers to fund the multimillion dollar restoration, the town board is seeking private sector investments to historically restore the home and put it to good use.”
Preservation officials from organizations including Oyster Bay Main Street Association and Oyster Bay Civic Association said they're hopeful town officials will find a way forward for the property and it won't face the wrecking ball.
Harriet Clark, executive director of nearby Raynham Hall Museum, said a sustained effort to create a new future for Mill Pond House is overdue.
“We’re at the point where … somebody just needs to take a stab at what this property could be,” she said.
For Mill Pond House, built in the early 18th century and among the oldest surviving buildings in Oyster Bay, the ravages of water damage, fire and time have taken a heavy toll.
In 2021, a contractor determined a renovation to the town-owned structure would cost $1.3 million.
Nearly three years later, there's no plan in place for moving forward as town officials say they're still looking for a private buyer who would agree to preserve the building.
Last month, the nonprofit Preservation Long Island placed the structure on its 2023 list of endangered historic places.
“The house is only going to take so much,” said Tara Cubie, the nonprofit's preservation director. “The clock is ticking.”
In 1976, the town designated the house, located at West Shore Road and West Main Street, as a landmark. In 2008, Oyster Bay bought the house and its 2-acre property from developer Charles Wang for $1.9 million.
In 2014, after two suspicious fires, town officials discussed saving the damaged structure by selling it to a private owner with restrictive covenants in place to guarantee it would be restored.
Nearly a decade later, no deal is in place.
Oyster Bay officials have “been in discussions with multiple interested parties thus far, and certainly welcome others,” town spokeswoman Marta Kane said this week.
The house is on land the Townsend family, one of the founding families of Oyster Bay, acquired in the 1600s. Esther Townsend, a prominent businesswoman known for a sloop-based trading venture, had the house built sometime before 1720 and its core remains intact, according to Preservation Long Island.
Town officials said fire-damaged parts of the building were reinforced after Nassau Suffolk Engineering & Architecture PLLC carried out a $248,400 contract in 2021 in which they investigated the state of the structure and came up with the restoration cost estimate.
Oyster Bay spokesman Brian Nevin said that without the intervention of the Supervisor Joseph Saladino's administration, “the building would have surely continued to succumb to the elements.”
He added: “Rather than ask taxpayers to fund the multimillion dollar restoration, the town board is seeking private sector investments to historically restore the home and put it to good use.”
Preservation officials from organizations including Oyster Bay Main Street Association and Oyster Bay Civic Association said they're hopeful town officials will find a way forward for the property and it won't face the wrecking ball.
Harriet Clark, executive director of nearby Raynham Hall Museum, said a sustained effort to create a new future for Mill Pond House is overdue.
“We’re at the point where … somebody just needs to take a stab at what this property could be,” she said.
House of history
- Built in the early 18th century, Mill Pond House is among Oyster Bay's oldest buildings.
- The town bought the house and its property in 2008.
- Oyster Bay's aim of selling the fire-scarred, dilapidated property so far has fallen flat.
- Preservation Long Island put the house on its 2023 list of endangered historic places.
Joseph Ostapiuk covers the Town of Oyster Bay and the City of Glen Cove. He joined Newsday in 2023 after spending more than six years at the Staten Island Advance/SILive.com.
