The "Legs" have been given yet another stay of execution. At last night's meeting, the Sag Harbor Zoning Board of Appeals tabled Ruth Vered and Janet Lehr's application for variances while the two groups try to work out a compromise.
Curbed readers should be familiar with the long-running brouhaha over the Larry Rivers statue, but if not, here's a quick refresher: Ms. Vered and Ms. Lehr installed the sculpture on the side of their home over two years ago. Sag Harbor's Zoning Board almost immediately deemed it a structure and said that would need to come down because it is too tall, too close to the property line and protrudes into the sky plane. The issue finally came to a head this winter when the Zoning Board gave them a date to take down the sculpture or run the risk of a day in court. The pair, never fans of backing down, applied for another set of variances (for the second time, we believe) before that occurred. And here we are now...
At yesterday's meeting Chairwoman Gayle Pickering suggested the following for a potential compromise:
· A clear timeline on how long the “Legs” may stay
· They could not be lit at night (they have been in the past)
· The pair would be prohibited from erecting similar structures in the futureEven with a potential agreement in the works?a draft of which should be available for April 17's meeting?board members expressed reservations about allowing it: "We are setting a precedent and it is not about the art, it is about the law." However, what the board should really be concerned with is if Ms. Vered will hold up her end of the bargain. Do they honestly think that she'll take the "Legs" down at the end of whatever timeline to which they agree? Considering how long and how hard she's fought to keep them, it's not a big stretch of the imagination to think she'll continue doing so when the time comes.
· Sag Harbor ZBA Stalls “Legs” Decision; Suggests Compromise [Sag Harbor Express]
· All Previous Larry Rivers' "Legs" Coverage [Curbed Hamptons]