Hoping to keep island pristine

Every year on Town Night, fireworks would explode into the late-summer sky from Elizabeth Island on Spy Pond.

But the popular town display may have to be launched from a different spot in the future.

Within a week or so, a private land trust is expected to begin negotiations to try to buy the 2-acre island. The Arlington Land Trust has stated it probably will rule out future fireworks from the island if it succeeds in the purchase. But the transaction also would save the little island from probable development, leaving it in its natural state for the public to enjoy, the land trust stated.

"Protecting it would ensure that public access was available forever," said Brian Rehrig, the trust's treasurer. "It's the centerpiece of Spy Pond. Its appearance is a very important part of the visual aspect of the pond."

Coming up with enough money to match what developers may be willing to pay is the challenge.

Island owner Elaine Sacco has said she wants to build two post-and-beam houses on the island and has set a price of $999,000 for the property. She said money from the sale would go toward upkeep of her home in Arlington across the pond and another in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

"I could use it," said Sacco, who has owned the island for 45 years. "It would help me. Inflation's catching up. The taxes and insurance are killing me."

The island has been on the market for about a year and has had no serious takers. Sacco conceded that one of the problems is figuring out how to get sewer and water service to the island, which has no access except by boat over the 100-acre pond.

That leaves an opening for the land trust, and Rehrig said he hopes, eventually, that its goals will dovetail with those of Sacco.

"Elaine has often expressed a preference for seeing the island preserved," he said. "We, of course, want to see the same thing. She's not in a position to just donate it to conservation, so we're trying to figure out how to satisfy her needs and at the same time protect the island permanently."

While no plans have been drawn up, Rehrig said the trust hopes to keep the island open to the public. Preserving and enhancing public access, he said, "is one of the important reasons for wanting to protect it."

The island is a bird habitat where a bald eagle has been spotted, where a great blue heron makes its summer home, and where 120 species have been identified in recent years, according to a trust newsletter. It is important habitat during spring and fall bird migrations, the trust stated.

The island also has historical significance, although the origin of its name remains murky. Local historian Richard Duffy has written that the island might be named after Elizabeth Russell, widow of Revolutionary War hero Jason Russell, whose home on Massachusetts Avenue is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Rehrig said he believes that Sacco has been an excellent steward of the island and has been generous about letting it be used for certain functions.

The annual Town Night celebration is one of those occasions. Until this year, Sacco has allowed fireworks to be shot from her island, to the delight of residents and visitors.

Last Friday, the event drew the usual crowds of parents and children eager to applaud the clown, eat hot dogs from the Elks Lodge grill, and view the fireworks, this year set off from a barge in the middle of the pond.

Anneli Irving, who was waiting with two daughters for the pony rides, said she would prefer that there be no development on the island. "Our whole neighborhood would be against it," said Irving, who lives on Lakeview Street.

Sharing that view would be many of the more than 300 children who participate in the Arlington Boys and Girls Club boating program every summer, according to Derek Curran, the group's operations manager.

With Sacco's permission, the children, ages 8 to 17, maneuver kayaks, canoes, row boats, sailboats, and paddle boats around the pond and land on Elizabeth Island to rest, Curran said.

"Not to be able to go over would be disappointing," Curran said.

"It's the highlight of the summer for some of the kids to be able to explore the island."

In the past, Sacco said, she has gladly given permission to the club or just about anyone else who asked. It is the interlopers who leave a mess behind them that bother her.

"People abuse the privilege, and they trash it," she said.

As a result, Sacco, 68, finds herself having to row about 200 feet over to the island to clean up.

Sacco's rights must be protected, Rehrig acknowledged.

"It may be called Elizabeth Island by most people," he said, "but, in fact, for the last [45] years, it's been Elaine's Island, and Elaine needs to be satisfied with the outcome."

Rehrig said the land trust has been working with the Massachusetts Audubon Society on how to maintain the bird habitat.

As for the Town Night celebration, Rehrig said, "fireworks and birds don't mix."

"Fortunately, it's probably a nonissue because the town seems to have determined it's actually easier and more economical to use a barge than to use the island," he said. "Certainly the birds are happier that way."

Connie Paige can be reached at cpaige@globe.com.