Two familiar names from New Albany’s growth boom are now showing up in an unsettling place: planning records for Jeffrey Epstein’s private island, Little St. James. Documents tie design elements from the Columbus-area Easton Town Center to the island, including the same kind of park-like trellises and walkways that helped define Central Ohio’s upscale retail vibe. Those records identify former New Albany Company executive Gary Kerney and longtime planner Stephen Caplinger as contributors.
According to The Columbus Dispatch, records reviewed by NBC4 show Easton’s trellis structures were floated as design inspiration for buildings on Little St. James. The materials reportedly include sketches and reference images that point directly to Easton’s landscaped walkways and structural trellises, and they name Kerney and Caplinger in that context. NBC4 first aired the reporting that sparked the Dispatch follow-up.
Who the New Albany Players Are
Stephen Caplinger is a New Albany-based landscape architect who once served as director of planning and design for The New Albany Company, according to LSU College of Art & Design. His resume and firm materials describe decades shaping master-planned communities, streetscapes and mixed-use projects, work that helped define how New Albany’s public spaces look and feel. Caplinger now runs a private design practice in the area and has been a fixture in regional planning circles for years.
Wexner Ties Raise Bigger Questions
The design thread feeds into broader scrutiny of billionaire Les Wexner’s ties to Epstein and the ways Central Ohio’s development ecosystem overlapped with him. Justice Department files and recent congressional testimony have spotlighted Wexner’s business relationship with Epstein and in some accounts have cited him as a potential co-conspirator, according to the AP. In interviews released by federal prosecutors, Ghislaine Maxwell told investigators Epstein “ran New Albany,” a remark reported by WOSU Public Media that has only intensified local unease.
No Allegations of Crimes Against Local Planners
The Columbus Dispatch notes that neither Kerney nor Caplinger has been accused of any criminal conduct tied to Epstein’s operation. A New Albany Company spokesperson told the paper that Kerney had not been with the firm since early 1997. The Dispatch also reported that Wexner’s representatives say he had no knowledge of Epstein’s illegal activity. Coverage so far frames the design connections as part of a wider probe into social and business networks around Epstein, not as the basis for new criminal charges.
Legal Fallout and Community Blowback
On the legal front, the heaviest pressure remains on Epstein’s estate and long-running civil cases. The U.S. Virgin Islands has filed civil litigation alleging that dozens of girls, some as young as 11, were trafficked and assaulted on Epstein’s islands, according to ABC News. Closer to home, local activists and some civic leaders are again calling for institutions to reevaluate Wexner’s public honors and formal ties. Axios has outlined how those efforts collide with growing political and congressional interest in Wexner’s relationship with Epstein.
What Comes Next for Central Ohio
For residents and institutions in Central Ohio, the newly surfaced records deepen long-simmering questions about how regional planners, power brokers and major donors ended up anywhere near Epstein’s orbit. Expect louder demands for documents, timelines and explanations from local firms and officials as congressional and civil reviews grind on. The episode is a reminder that local design work does not always stay local, and that the footprint of Central Ohio’s development machine can show up in some of the most troubling places imaginable.
