With a vote at a board meeting tonight, East Hampton Town officials plan to hire a law firm that successfully represented the city of Santa Monica, Calif., in a fight to gain local control over its airport to advise the town as it pursues Federal Aviation Administration approval of restrictions on the use of East Hampton Airport in order to control noise.

Morrison Foerster “has unique experience and expertise in advising publicly owned airports on protecting residents from aircraft noise, garnered over decades of devising and defending a variety of such noise mitigation measures,” according to the board resolution.

The town’s position has been that it holds legal authority to enact local airport use restrictions, such as an overnight curfew, without asking for the F.A.A.’s okay.

But three local laws adopted by East Hampton in 2015 that restricted takeoffs and landings at the airport were struck down by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals last fall in a judgment on a lawsuit filed by aviation interests. The town has filed a petition for a Supreme Court ruling on that matter and is waiting to hear whether the case will be reviewed.

In the meantime, officials intend to begin following the procedures outlined by the F.A.A. to apply for the federal agency’s approval.

According to a resolution to be offered by Councilwoman Kathee Burke-Gonzalez tonight, “the town wishes to exhaust all options to protect residents from excessive aircraft noise, including pursuing a noise control ordinance through the F.A.A. Part 161 process under the Airport Noise and Capacity Act of 1990.”

Over several seasons, consultants for the town have been collecting and collating the data on East Hampton Airport flights and noise complaints that will be needed for submission to the F.A.A.

Like East Hampton, Santa Monica has a long history of airport-related litigation and community complaints over aircraft noise. Represented by Morrison Foerster, the city came to an agreement early this year with the F.A.A. that allows it to close its airport after 2028. The agreement also recognizes Santa Monica’s authority to make decisions over land use, allowing it to shorten its airport runway in the interim.

According to the resolution that the board is expected to approve tonight, legal fees of up to $50,000 will be paid to Morrison Foerster from the airport budget account.

The East Hampton Town Planning Board wrestled with two Montauk applications on April 26. Members also learned that an objectionable gate installed by Steven A. Cohen, the hedge fund manager whose Point72 Asset Management company has an office in the former Wei Fun restaurant on Pantigo Road in East Hampton, had been scrapped.

One of the Montauk applications is from the Beach House Resort on the southeast portion of Carl Fisher Plaza. The owner, Larry Siedlick, recently purchased an adjoining vacant 12,000-square-foot parcel on South Elmwood Avenue, and wants to use it for a 3,200-square-foot tent.

“It seems that the Montauk Beach House would utilize this property for special events most weekends during the summer season,” Eric Schantz, a planner for the town, said in a memo. He based this on conversations he had with the applicant’s agent, Susan Brierley of Due East Planning, but during the discussion it was unclear exactly when the tent would be used.

“I am confused,” Nancy Keeshan, a board member, said, apparently speaking for several others. Job Potter, the board chairman, asked what the tent would be used for. “Our client would like to use it in conjunction with the Beach House, exclusively for the Beach House,” was the answer.

The site plan proposed calls for parking and electricity to be added to the property, but Mr. Potter asked, “Why go through all that?” Ian Calder-Piedmonte, another board member, followed up with a more basic question. “Would we even be allowed to approve a parking lot on a site without a primary use?”

Parking was a major concern for Mr. Schantz, who wrote that there did not appear to be any plan to fold the new property into the Beach House site, meaning the owners could not claim the tent as an accessory use. While the Beach House, in downtown Montauk, is zoned for resort use, it is nonconforming because it has no on-site parking.

In the end, board members and John Jilnicki, the board’s attorney, agreed the applicant should take a different approach and send a letter to the Town Board, explaining the use of the tent, to see if it qualifies for a mass-gathering permit.

The other Montauk application received a skeptical response. It came from Gone Fishin’ Marina, which wants to increase seating for its restaurant on the marina site, which is toward the end of East Lake Drive, from 16 to 54. Most of the additional seats would be at tables on an outdoor deck.

The property was approved in 1992 as a multiple business complex, with two retail stores, a boat storage and repair barn, and a 177-slip marina. The issue now before the board, JoAnne Pahwul, the town’s assistant planning director; said, is the calculation of how many seats could be added under the town code, saying that outdoor dining was not to exceed 30 percent of the permitted enclosed use. In 2012, the Town Building Department found that 30 percent was to be based on the capacity of the interior of the restaurant. In this case, that number is 16, so the restaurant would be allowed an additional 4.8 seats.

Joel Halsey, representing the marina, argued for a different method of calculating outdoor seating. In his view, it should be based on the interior space on the entire Gone Fishin’ property, not just the restaurant.  Mr. Halsey, a former town Planning Department staff member, did not agree with Marguerite Wolffsohn, who is the head of that department, who told the board that “enclosed use” refers only to interior restaurant space.

“It doesn’t make sense,” Mr. Halsey countered. He said that under that logic, the town would be encouraging owners to build bigger restaurants. “I’ve got 16 enclosed seats. Let me knock down some walls here,” he said.

Kathleen Cunningham, a board member, said her main concern was Lake Montauk, which the restaurant faces, calling the lake a “challenged body.” Mr. Potter agreed. “This is very close to Lake Montauk. Any increased use has to be looked at very carefully,” he said.

Questions about parking, the sanitary system, and whether there is an apartment at the site remained open. Mr. Halsey said he might seek a determination from the town’s head building inspector on the 30 percent calculation.

As for Mr. Cohen, his architect last year, Alexander Baranovich, ran afoul of the board when a sliding entrance gate with cedar facing was installed without site plan approval. Mr. Baranovich explained to the planning board in February 2016 that gates were needed in front and back of the property because drivers and pedestrians were cutting through the lot to access an alley and neighboring businesses, such as Goldberg’s Famous Bagels.

Board members were unhappy last year not only that the elaborate front gate was installed without permission but that it was out of character with the area and had a “gated community” look, along with a chain-link fence with a keyed entry at the rear of the property. It soon vanished.

 With a new architect now in charge of the design, the board learned on April 26 that a new method of closing off the area was planned. Instead of last year’s unfriendly gate, this year industrial bollards are to be set in the ground that will rise up at Mr. Cohen’s and his employees’ command, blocking access to the front of the property, while being visually open.

“I like it. I think you did a good job,” Ms. Keeshan said, a sentiment that was embraced by the other board members. Mr. Cohen’s bollards will next go to the town’s architectural review board for approval.

G.O.P. Finalizes Candidates

The East Hampton Town Republican Committee completed its selection of candidates for townwide offices last week and was expected to formally nominate them at its regular monthly meeting yesterday.

As expected, Manny Vilar is the party’s nominee for supervisor, with Jerry Larsen and Paul Giardina the nominees for town board. For town trustee, Diane McNally and James Grimes, incumbents, will be joined by Joseph Bloecker, Gary Cobb, Julie Evans, Michael Havens, Lyndsey Hayes, Susan Vorpahl, and Willy Wolter.

The committee endorsed Stephen Lynch and Carole Brennan, both incumbents, for superintendent of highways and town clerk, respectively. Also receiving the committee’s nod was Tina Silverman for assessor. Reg Cornelia, the committee’s chairman, said that Justice Steven Tekulsky, a Democratic incumbent, had called him on Monday to say that he would accept a cross-endorsement from the Republicans.

“Optimism in our ranks is high,” Mr. Cornelia said in a statement issued this week, “because we know we have the message, talent, and experience to lead this town in the right direction.”

Indy Party Screens Monday

The East Hampton Independence Party has invited candidates from all parties within the Town of East Hampton to interview and be endorsed on its line in the Nov. 7 election. The screening, which is open to the public, will take place on Monday beginning at 6 p.m. at Ashawagh Hall in Springs.

All of the Republican and Democratic candidates for town supervisor and for town board have contacted the party to be screened, Elaine Jones, the Independence Party’s chairwoman, told The Star on Monday.

“Our openings are for all positions, and our goals are to select people who have interest, enthusiasm, and a knowledge of the history and purpose of the job they seek, and want to learn more,” Ms. Jones said in a statement on Monday. “Great opportunities lie ahead for each member of each board to be ‘all that they can be.’ ”

Independence Party officials will offer those selected an opportunity to hear from past and present office holders and involved townspeople, and will discuss the need for boards to work well together.

“We truly believe that when a board respects each member’s ideas and ideals, then and only then are the members of our community being served,” Ms. Jones said. “And, after all, that is why we are here.” C.W.

East Hampton Town

Future of the Coastline

A public forum on the ongoing effort to develop a coastal assessment resiliency plan for East Hampton Town will take place on Tuesday from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Amagansett Presbyterian Church’s Scoville Hall, on Meeting House Lane. Representatives of GEI Consultants, who are working with a committee appointed by the town board, will discuss sea level rise, erosion, and potential storm impacts throughout East Hampton.

In developing a resiliency plan, which is referred to as CARP, the working group has been studying different locations throughout the town to determine those that are most vulnerable to flooding, now and in the future. The consultants will review preliminary findings and modeling that show  what might happen in the various areas. They will also seek comments from the public.

The goal is a plan containing recommendations on how to plan for, mitigate, or avoid, if possible, future problems along the coastline.

Hamlet Plans Come Into Focus

Consultants hired to develop recommendations for the downtown areas of East Hampton Town’s hamlets will be on hand in early June to present their draft reports. Various presentations will focus on segments of the town as well as the overall hamlet study plan.

A presentation centered on Springs and East Hampton will take place on June 1 at 3 p.m. at East Hampton Town Hall.

On June 2 at 10 a.m., also at Town Hall, the consultants will present a summary of the hamlet study, which, according to a press release, “is intended to provide recommendations to the town board for the implementation of a plan to assure the harmonious development of nonresidential properties in a manner which complies with the town’s adopted 2015 comprehensive plan.”

At 7 p.m. on June 2, at the Montauk Firehouse, the planning consultants will discuss their recommendations for the Montauk downtown and dock areas.

Wainscott will be the focus of a meeting at 9 a.m. on June 3 at the LTV Studios. It will be followed with a 1 p.m. session on Amagansett at the American Legion Hall in that hamlet. J.P.

Southampton Town

Land Buy in Bridge

The Town of Southampton will buy a vacant parcel totaling .74 acre on Montauk Highway in Bridgehampton, near the Bridgehampton Commons and Mercado restaurant. The board voted Tuesday to purchase Charlton D. Halsey’s property for $600,000 using the community preservation fund. The parcel is in a designated wetlands preservation target area, next to Little Long Pond, and is adjacent to other preserved lands, according to Mary Wilson, the town’s community preservation manager.

And Another Along 39A

The purchase of 1.4 acres on County Road 39A in Southampton Village will assist in the widening of the highway should the county choose to do so in the future. The town board agreed to buy the vacant parcel from the estate of Edward D. Sidorowicz on Tuesday, at a cost of $1.4 million.

Mostly C.P.F. money will be used, except for a 12-foot-wide strip along the road. That portion of land will be viewed as a donation, according to Ms. Wilson. If the county chooses to widen the road, it would take the strip through eminent domain. If that portion had been purchased with C.P.F. money, it would pose a problem, town officials said. The 1.4 acres adjoins a town-owned property. An agreement with the village is in the works for a community garden.

A Way to Bury the Lines

The town board has voted to support proposed legislation before the State Assembly and State Senate that would allow the town to establish a special tax district in communities looking to bury power lines. New transmission lines are a concern to some residents who fear they will disturb the natural beauty of places like Long Beach in Noyac. Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. and Senator Kenneth P. LaValle proposed the bills.

A similar bill for underground utility improvement districts was already passed for the Town of East Hampton.

Renewable Energy 2025

The town board has established a goal of meeting 100 percent of the town’s electricity consumption through renewable energy sources by the year 2025. Councilwoman Christine Scalera abstained from the vote because, she said, she felt it was a goal without a specific plan as to how to achieve it.

The town’s previously adopted Sustainability 400+ Plan looked for the town to become carbon neutral by the town’s 400th anniversary in 2040.

T.K.V.

East Hampton Town’s Republican and Democratic Committees have finalized their respective slates of candidates for the nine-member town trustee board.

On Monday, the East Hampton Town Republican Committee announced that Susan Vorpahl, a daughter of Mary Vorpahl and the late Stuart Vorpahl, is a designated candidate for town trustee in the Nov. 7 election.

Reg Cornelia, the committee’s chairman, said that Ms. Vorpahl’s decision to run completed the Republicans’ slate of trustee candidates. The slate will be officially designated at the committee’s next regular meeting, scheduled for Wednesday.

“We are extremely proud to have Susan on board,” Mr. Cornelia said in a statement issued on Monday. “Everyone knows the contributions her father made to keeping the Dongan Patent a living, breathing document and a continuing guarantee of the rights of the citizens of East Hampton. Without his efforts, it might have ended up as a historical artifact in a museum. I’m sure that as a trustee Susan will make her father proud.” Stuart Vorpahl, who died last year, was a lifelong bayman and served several terms as a trustee.

Pending the official designation, Ms. Vorpahl will join Diane McNally and Jim Grimes, who are Republican incumbent trustees, and six other designees. They are Julie Evans, Willy Wolter, Joe Bloecker, Lyndsey Hayes, Gary Cobb, and Mike Havens. Mr. Bloecker is a former trustee. Mr. Havens is a former candidate for trustee. Tim Bock, an incumbent Republican trustee, is not seeking re-election.

Jeanne Frankl and Ilissa Meyer, co-chairwomen of the East Hampton Town Democratic Committee, announced that the party’s screening committee has forwarded its recommendations for townwide offices to the full Democratic Committee. Candidates will be officially nominated at the party’s nominating convention on May 17.

All five Democratic trustee incumbents will seek re-election this fall. They are Francis Bock, the clerk, or presiding officer; Rick Drew and Bill Taylor, who are deputy clerks; Tyler Armstrong, and Brian Byrnes. John Aldred, Dell Cullum, Susan McGraw Keber, and Francesca Rheannon round out the Democrats’ slate of trustee candidates.

Pat Mansir, a Democratic trustee, resigned last month. Mr. Byrnes had said last month that he would not seek a third term, but Ms. Mansir’s resignation prompted him to reverse that position.

A public hearing before the East Hampton Town Zoning Board of Appeals on May 2 brought the history of a small and particularly constrained lot on Napeague into focus as members of an East Hampton family sought special permission and five variances for a retirement house.

Bruce Bistrian, a physician who has lived in Massachusetts for many years, and his wife, Eleanor Dix Bistrian, want to build on a slightly larger than half-acre parcel at 45 Napeague Harbor Road. They were represented by Richard Whalen of Land Marks and their daughter, Britton Bistrian of Land Use Solutions. Ms. Bistrian told the board her grandfather, Peter Bistrian, had owned a large triangular swath of land there bounded by the Long Island Rail Road tracks, Napeague Harbor Road, and a private road paralleling Napeague Harbor for about 50 years. In 1982, Ms. Bistrian said, he donated most of the property to the state and was promised that the family could develop the remainder.

The property is constrained by wetlands and dunes and lacks access from a public road. Because there is no direct access, the couple are asking permission to create an easement from an adjacent lot, which they also own. A variance is needed for that easement. Variances are also needed for setbacks from the wetlands of the proposed 2,114-square-foot house, its height, and its sanitary system.

Ms. Bistrian told the board her parents wanted to build their “dream house,” and pointed out that no amenities, such as a pool or hot tub, were planned. Dr. Bistrian also was at the meeting and told the board he and his wife have an 800-square-foot cottage on Atlantic Avenue in Amagansett. “I would like a somewhat larger house,” he said.

The Planning Department, represented by Brian Frank, the department’s chief environmentalist, said he appreciated the Bistrian family and its history and spoke respectfully about Ms. Bistrian. However, he said emotion should not carry the day.

“The proposed construction would result in significant habitat fragmentation to the wetlands and dune land,” he warned in a memo. Flooding in the area is a major concern, he told the board Tuesday. “The lowest elevations of the property are found less than four feet above sea level to the northwest of the proposed house and in the southern portion of the property where the driveway is proposed.” The rising sea level will only exacerbate the problem in coming years.

He called 10,000 square feet of clearing, which was shown on the survey, misleading, because of the undulating nature of the land.

“It is going to be very challenging to design a house and driveway that meets the special permit and variance standards,” he said, adding that it “may only be suited for cottage scale development.”

He also said that, since the Bistrians are asking for an easement for the driveway on the neighboring property, while maintaining that parcel for potential future development, the board should ask the Bistrians what they have in mind for its future. The lots were laid out before current zoning, which places them in a two-acre minimum district.

Two people spoke in support of the project, Dan Dubinsky and Michael Cinque. Randy Lerner, an owner of many Amagansett properties, wrote a letter of support, while Colleen and Robert Randle wrote a letter opposing the plans.

 Cate Rogers, a board member, agreed with Mr. Frank that it must adhere to the standards the code calls for, saying, “It is an appointed board.” The chairman, John Whelan, puzzled over how a landlocked lot could ever have been created, as well as the unusual shapes of some of the parcels. Mr. Whelan called it a “Euclidian” subdivision.

With many questions left unanswered, including topographical details, and mention of a possible redesign of the septic system, the board agreed to keep the hearing and record open, to allow Ms. Bistrian time.

Representatives of East Hampton Town’s Fisheries Advisory Committee this week again asked the town to help fund a comprehensive analysis of the socioeconomic importance of fisheries on the East End and reiterated fishermen’s concerns about the Deepwater Wind offshore turbine installation. 

The committee would like to hire Cornell Cooperative Extension to conduct the economic analysis, and its members are seeking participation from East Hampton and other local municipalities in order to raise the $100,000 needed to pay for it.

Brad Loewen, the chairman of the fisheries committee, who is a bayman and a former town councilman, said the committee has also been examining how — or if — the State Department of Environmental Conservation considers potential detrimental effects on fisheries when assessing the impact of proposed projects, such as the offshore wind farm. With unsatisfactory responses so far from the D.E.C. to requests for information, the committee, which is working with John Jilnicki, a town attorney, may ask the town board to submit a Freedom of Information Law request for the needed documents.

While the offshore wind turbines 30 miles from Montauk Point may be inevitable, Mr. Loewen said, “the last thing we want to see is that cable go through Napeague and Gardiner’s Bays, and come ashore in the bay. It’s a disaster,” he said.

“Please make sure that it comes ashore on the ocean side,” Mr. Loewen asked the board. Town permission will be needed for the electrical cable’s landing site. The bay area “is the most productive fishing area in New York State, and cannot be disturbed,” he said.

Town Supervisor Larry Cantwell suggested the fisheries committee meet directly with Deepwater Wind to outline its concerns. The board has already asked the company “to minimize use of the bay estuary on the north side” of the Island, he said.

Arnold Leo, another representative of the town’s fisheries advisory committee, also briefed the board Tuesday of the work he does on fishermen’s behalf. Mr. Leo attends about a dozen meetings a year of the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, and his presence is critical for East Hampton fisherman, he told the board.

The two fisheries management agencies determine catch limits on various species for both recreational and commercial fishermen. Mr. Leo represents local fishermen’s interests and concerns and sometimes provides a little real-life information, he said in a report to the board.  

Catch limits, imposed to protect fish and shellfish stocks from overfishing and help those that have been depleted replenish themselves, are based on a statistical method of random sampling used to try to determine population levels, Mr. Leo said.

Although the agencies have good data “about 80 percent of the time,” and make “reasonable enough decisions,” sometimes what fishermen find going on in the sea can differ, he said.

By attending the agencies’ meetings, “I have managed to get the Town of East Hampton fishing industry into the loop of decision-making.” He is able to lobby members to consider particular issues and the impact of decisions such as a total moratorium on lobster fishing in this area, which had been proposed. It is hard for a fishery to ever recover from a total shutdown, Mr. Leo said.

Mr. Cantwell acknowledged Mr. Leo’s efforts and that of the entire fisheries committee. “I spent 12 years on the Atlantic Marine Fisheries Commission,” he said, “and I know how important it is to have representation on those committees. So the work you are doing is very important,” he told Mr. Leo.

Mr. Loewen also requested the town board’s backing on an issue of ongoing concern: the county spraying of methoprene on wetlands as a mosquito deterrent, which the fisheries committee wants to see discontinued.

Representative Lee Zeldin has reintroduced the Plum Island Preservation Act, a bill to prevent the sale of Plum Island by the government to the highest bidder. The bipartisan bill passed the House in May 2016, but the Senate did not act on it, necessitating its reintroduction.

The bill will commission the Government Accountability Office, in consultation with the Department of Homeland Security, which now owns the island, to formulate a plan for the island’s future. The legislation requires the plan to focus on conservation, education, and research, and include alternatives such as the transfer of ownership to another federal agency, the state, a local government entity, a nonprofit, or a combination. The act would suspend laws passed in 2008 and 2011 that mandated the island’s sale.

A dark cloud over a proposed car wash in Wainscott grew darker on April 19, when the East Hampton Town Planning Board, by a 5-to-1 vote, asked the Planning Department to prepare a memorandum examining the environmental impact of the proposal. If the memo finds that the project could have a negative impact, the planning board is likely to require that the applicant, James Golden, have a detailed study prepared under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, requiring time and money.

The car wash would be on a 1.2-acre site on the northeast corner of Montauk Highway and East Gate Road, where a dilapidated building was once a discotheque known most recently as the Star Room and before that, the Swamp. The building has been vacant for many years. The April 19 meeting was the third over the last year at which a site plan for the car wash has been discussed. Neighbors have been vehement in opposition, citing both traffic and potential environmental impacts.

The application for site plan approval received preliminary review by the board a year ago, at a meeting in which several neighbors spoke out and board members questioned the location. A follow-up meeting in September was more contentious, with opponents packing Town Hall.

At that time, Job Potter, a planning board member, said, “This is a bad place for a car,” and the room exploded with applause. Mr. Potter has since become the board’s chairman. He was absent on April 19, but his sentiment was omnipresent. “You’re going against the tide,” Randy Parsons said to Mr. Golden during an exchange. “There is nowhere in the town that this would work.” He expressed concern that Mr. Golden was wasting his time and money.

Mr. Golden complained about spending $150,000 in an effort to make his plan a reality. He said there was a need for a car wash in East Hampton, and that if it were built, all the members of the board would use it. He said he is in contract to purchase the property, pending board approval. Without approval, “You can’t justify $3 million for 1.2 acres,” he said. He called the location viable because of heavy traffic. “Montauk Highway is a state road. How are we going to overcome this traffic thing? I can’t keep throwing money at the fire.”

Mr. Golden is the owner of JJG Management, a limited liability company with a Doylestown, Pa., address. His sister, Gail Golden, apparently is a corporate partner. She was not in attendance on April 19.

Looming over the conversation was the Home Goods store, approved by the board in 2012, which is west of the proposed car wash. Opponents have said that store has had a negative effect on traffic in Wainscott, as well as on the visual appearance of what they refer to as the “gateway to East Hampton.”

Mr. Golden, however, asked why he should have to go through a process that the Home Goods developer, the late Greg Saunders, did not. “This is cumulative,” Diana Weir, a board member, responded. “When Home Goods was proposed, this was not developed.”

The only planning board member who did not agree the Planning Department should prepare an environmental impact memo was Ian Calder-Piedmonte, who expressed concern about the possibility of requiring a State Environmental Quality Review Act study. “Once we make a positive declaration, that doesn’t go away easily. If we do it here, I think we’re going to have to think carefully about where else.” He also said the board needed to be consistent.

“There is value in consistency, but things change,” Kathleen Cunningham responded. “Another use might be more compatible with this site.”

Carl Irace, an attorney representing a group of neighbors, also addressed the board. “We have concerns about the traffic, but we also have concerns about the chemicals used for a car wash. We’re concerned about the chemicals stored on site that would be used.”

Mr. Golden has told the board that the facility would recycle water, which would then be taken off the premises, thereby avoiding any pollution of nearby Georgica Pond. Mr. Irace was not mollified. “You are taking a precious resource, our groundwater. You are taking it from us, putting it in a tank, putting it on a truck and hauling it away to somewhere else,” he said, asking, “Why exploit the resource like that? How does it make sense to contaminate our water and dump it on someone else?”

Meanwhile, another car wash has been proposed by a different group for a site on Springs-Fireplace Road between the entrance and exit of the town recycling center. That proposal has also sparked neighbors’ angst, but the proposal appears stalled.

Real estate transactions in the first quarter of 2017 raised less money for the Peconic Bay Community Preservation Fund than they did in the first months of 2016, although the number of sales was virtually the same.

The preservation fund receives the proceeds of a 2-percent transfer tax imposed by the five East End towns, which provides money for land preservation and, starting this year after a successful referendum, for water quality improvement.

The fund, which has generated $1.2 billion since its inception in 1999, including $89.9 million last year, will continue until 2050. First-quarter revenues over all were $22.1 million this year, as opposed to $25.9 million last year, a 14-percent drop.

The decline was most pronounced in East Hampton Town, New York State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., who sponsored the C.P.F. legislation, announced this week in a press release.

East Hampton’s revenue for the first three months of the year decreased by just over 37 percent compared to the first quarter of 2016, coming in at $6.3 million this year while the revenue was $10.1 million last year. Transfer tax income for Southampton Town also declined, but by only 2.7 percent.

Scott Wilson, East Hampton Town’s director of land acquisition, said this week that the first-quarter revenue decrease is not unusual or of concern; the real estate market generally slows in winter months, he said, and preservation fund receipts in the ensuing months reflect that. He said he expects a “significant uptick” in proceeds during the year’s second quarter.

In the other three East End towns, Shelter Island saw a 30-percent drop in preservation fund revenue for the first quarter of this year, compared to the same period in 2016. In Southold there was a 20-percent decrease, and Riverhead’s revenue decreased by 7.6 percent.

“Real estate sales on the East End have plateaued since reaching a record high in 2014,” Mr. Thiele said in the press release. “C.P.F. revenues in 2016 were 13 percent lower than the program’s highest year in 2014, declining by about 7 percent a year over the last two years. The first three months of 2017 has continued that trend.”