In his open letter to Babylon Village residents, Mayor Ralph Scordino praises Former Mayor Donald Conroy and decries the loss of "local control" over the football field at Babylon High School. As he bemoans the possibility of some Village residents being "left with ‘unintended consequences’ because there was no discussion," he should give some thought to the plight of the long-suffering residents of Frederick Canal.

Did the Village administration that created the Village pool bulkhead and surely had local control over it consider the unintended consequences of their actions? The Mayor asks "did anyone approach the residents on South Carll and Argyle Park to hear their concerns about their homes bordering a County controlled athletic facility?" One wonders if anyone approached the residents on Frederick Canal to hear their concerns about how their homes would be adversely affected by the pool bulkhead at the time that bulkhead was built?

It is often true that what goes around comes around. It seems to me somewhat disingenuous and hypocritical of the Mayor that he expresses his indignation over the actions of the County and the Babylon School District. "Local control" does not, in and of itself, prevent or mitigate unintended consequences. Mayor Conroy, whom the Mayor lauded as a staunch defender of local control, virtually ignored the pleas of the residents of Frederick Canal for some relief from the unintended consequences of the pool bulkhead.

The Mayor put a great deal of emphasis on "community" when he said that "this community has been built on residents coming together to decide what is best for our Village." Yet it is the Mayor who is dividing this community by proposing a special taxing district only for the residents of Frederick Canal to solve the eel-grass problem. This proposal is hardly the ‘community’ coming together to solve its problems.

Local control did not provide an answer for Frederick Canal and may not provide an answer for South Carll and Argyle Park. What is needed are County, school district and Village officials who are willing to work together to face the consequences of and take responsibility for their actions.

Michael Wiplich

Babylon