To the Editor:
Anne Semmes has done Greenwich a public service with her careful and compelling reporting on the vision for the Havemeyer Building. Her story doesn’t just recount a proposal—it lifts a community conversation into the light, where it belongs.
The idea of transforming the Havemeyer into an arts center is not new. But as Ms. Semmes makes clear, it is enduring. It is rooted in the passion and foresight of individuals like Peter Malkin, Bea Crumbine, and Chuck Royce—each of whom has given decades to preserving what’s best about Greenwich while investing in its cultural future. Her article captures their voices with clarity and grace.
The need for civic spaces—shared, living spaces where neighbors gather—is greater than ever. Art can’t solve every problem, but it opens our minds, softens our divisions, and invites us into common purpose. Greenwich deserves that kind of anchor downtown. And Semmes’s reporting makes the case thoughtfully and thoroughly.
Her piece also reminds us that this effort has not failed—it has simply not yet been realized. That’s a vital distinction. Great communities revisit great ideas, especially when they are built on principle, feasibility, and public good. Ms. Semmes gives us the history, the people, and the plan—all laid out for renewed consideration.
Let’s hope her work inspires both action and renewed imagination.
