John Steinbeck’s former Sag Harbor retreat has been on the market for less than a week and there is already talk of preserving it, according to the Southampton Press.
“It’s a jewel in Sag Harbor’s literary crown,” said Canio’s Books owner Kathryn Szoka. “We have to go for it.”
But the $17.9 million asking price has local officials less than optimistic that the 1.8-acre property could be bought by anyone other than a private party.
“I don’t think there is any way unless a Steinbeck angel comes out of the blue,” said Mayor Kathleen Mulcahy during a Monday call with Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman and representatives of San Jose State University’s Center for Steinbeck Studies, the newspaper reported.
Schneiderman agreed and said it would be difficult even to get a new owner to allow an easement for the property. He suggested that a “national entity” step in and acquire the property.
[Southampton Press] — Dennis Lynch