"The story of the TR statue by A. Phiminster Proctor coming to Oyster Bay could fill a book", said Joe Reilly of Reilly + Associates, architects. The newest chapter will tell the story of the purchase by the town of the triangle property on the corner of Berry Hill Road and South Street which will become the home-park for the statue. "Working on it has very exciting possibilities. It's going to be a great addition to the hamlet," said Mr. Reilly who is designing the site.

Mr. Reilly was a member of the committee that helped raise the funds to have the statue cast from the original mold and be brought to Oyster Bay. The committee always hoped the statue would be placed at the triangle of land at the corner of Berry Hill Road and South Street.

That dream came true on June 19, when Town of Oyster Bay Supervisor John Venditto and Charles Wang of Island Properties sat down together and came to an agreement on the sale of the land by the town. The funding had been part of SEA Fund II. Now, Mr. Reilly has released a rendering of how the triangle property will look. The plan is to have it ready at least in time for the weekend of the Theodore Roosevelt Association annual meeting on Oct. 26-27-28 and which includes a parade down South Street.

Mr. Reilly, whose great-grandfather was a Rough Rider was overjoyed at events. "It's fantastic, it's unbelievable. We are so lucky," he said.

The work on turning the triangle into a park is intricate. The plan is to build up the southernmost area into a rock outcropping on which the horse and rider - TR as a Rough Rider - will stand. The plan includes cleaning up the area visually. The site will be bermed up at the southern end, and down to street level at the point. It comes up high, as it gets to where the Busy Bee is now, he said, and up to where the big rock outcropping will be.

Theodore Roosevelt Association President Jim Bruns said, "I think it's a fabulous positioning of the statue to make it a focal point for all visitors coming into town. It will be turned in the right direction to greet visitors as they arrive. It's a beautiful statue and it really needs to be accentuated - as it is going to be."

There will be five trees on the site dedicated to the five Oyster Bay men who died serving the country in WWI and died between 1917 and 1918. They include: Nicolas Abbati, Frank Boday, Fred H. Cassell, Luke Kiloran and Quentin Roosevelt. Their names are on the Legion memorial now located in front of Town Hall West.

There will be a flag at the northern end of the site. The statue will be lighted and TR will be looking up the road. The horse will be pointing toward the Hess station. "Teddy's head is facing up Pine Hollow Road; it is turned to the side," said Mr. Reilly. He has solved the question of where the tail would be pointing. It is pointing at the former Goodyear building currently under renovation.

"It will be a real gateway. It will greet you very strongly there," he said.

Mr. Reilly is looking forward to moving the statue and is visualizing it already. He said, "When we pick it up - this is only the second opportunity to see it way up in the air. It is hard to get that photo. It will be going right over the wires," he said.

The project includes making the large boulders he plans to use - to look more like a natural rock outcropping. He envisons the outcropping being about four and a half feet tall. "It really puts him on a pedestal, which you don't see. We are kind of hiding that base with a more natural outcropping. There will be brick pavers crossing the street to delineate the corner. When you come down the hill from Pine Hollow it will be a much, much different view than what you have seen before."

Mike Rich, another original committee member who brought the statue to Oyster Bay said, "It's going to be terrific. It's going to change the whole entrance to the town. As a TR fan, I'm sorry it took so long."

Mr. Rich is truly a TR fan; the late Andy Tini, a Rotarian, called Mike, the "TR Buff" or "Mr. TR." "My only disappointment is that he is not around to see it all coming together. He probably knew and has been looking down every step of the way. Between him and (the late TRA Executive Director) John Gable - they'll be looking down from above and enjoying what's happening," said Mike.

Mr. Rich said he recently went to see the off-Broadway play The Bully Pulpit, and he recommended it highly. "It's a wonderful play and we will try to bring it to Oyster Bay. It's so well done and enjoyable. Jim Bruns (TRA president) is looking into bringing it here, especially with the gas shortage. It is bringing the mountain to Mohammed."

Mentioning the late Andy Tini, who chaired the Rotary committee to bring the TR statue to Oyster Bay, and who died on Sunday, June 8, Mr. Rich said, "Bringing the TR statue to Oyster Bay was the cap in a long successful life." Having the A. Phiminster Proctor statue cast from the original mold and bringing it to Oyster Bay was a project of the Rotary Club of Oyster Bay to celebrate Rotary International's 100 anniversary. The service club believed the statue of TR, placed at the gateway to the hamlet, would be a great addition to Oyster Bay.

Rotarian Fritz Coudert gave the first $200,000 to the project, Roger Bahnik matched it. When the project was floundering Andy Tini went public with an appeal and local residents filled in the funding gap. Mr. Tini took it on as a personal project.

The work of the Oyster Bay Rotary Club to bring the statue to Oyster Bay was recognized in January of 2007 when they were presented with a duplicate sign of "Teddy Roosevelt Way."

The original sign is on the corner of Pine Hollow Road and Berry Hill Road, where the A. Phiminster Proctor statue stands. The town also presented the club with a proclamation naming Oct. 29 as "TR Statue Day in Oyster Bay." It is the day the statue of the 26th president arrived in town. "This commemorative day will remind everyone in town about TR's spirit. The spirit of TR should live on," said Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto at that time.

Rotarian Jack Bernstein is the president of the board of directors of the new corporation, the TR Statue Fund, Inc. The Rotary Foundation currently owns the statue and it is being transferred to the TR Statute Fund Inc. which will own it and take care of it.

They created it as a new not-for-profit fund, 501 3C, therefore contributions are deductible. The board of directors of the corporation include: Rotarian Jack Bernstein, Esq., president; Norm Parsons, TRA past president; John Hammond, Oyster Bay Town Historian; Rotarian Rich Cieciuch; Roger Bahnik, and Mike Rich, board vice president.

Mr. Rich is also co-chairing the sesquicentennial parade for TR with Lance Elder and John Hammond. Mr. Rich and Mr. Elder were co-chairs of the parade committee to celebrate the 125th birthday of President Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States.

Mr. Bernstein said, "I have to work out the details with the town to see what we will be doing and what the town will be doing."

The town as part of the purchase agreement is forming a committee to oversee the maintenance of the property. The town will appoint five members and Mr. Wang will appoint the sixth member, said a town spokesperson.

The triangle will include the original American Legion monument which was moved to the front lawn of Town Hall East when the legion moved their headquarters to 120 South Street. The building was located in what is now Mariner's Walk site, now owned by Island Properties.

Mr. Rich said the American Legion Quentin Roosevelt Post #4 is on board about moving the original monument now in front of Town Hall West, to the flag pole location on the triangle.

"I think it will be nice and will create some good hometown pride," he added.