A draft three-year capital budget discussed by the East Hampton Town Board this week calls for $5.2 million in spending on capital projects this year, an estimated $8.3 million next year, and $7.9 million in 2019.

The plan covers 84 projects for which the town board would individually issue bonds. Ten projects included in it are ongoing, and eight would take place over several years.

Big-ticket projects anticipated over the three years include the construction of a new senior center building for $4.3 million, and the construction of a new town hall building on the Pantigo Road campus for $4.1 million. Both would be offset by the sale of town assets, including office condominiums currently occupied by town departments that would move into the new space.

A total of $5 million in spending has been projected for 2018 and 2019 for a comprehensive upgrade of the town’s emergency communications system, but that overhaul, “critical because the system is now 17 or 18 years old,” said Supervisor Larry Cantwell, should be moved up.

Other items in the capital plan are “normal, everyday items,” Len Bernard, the town budget officer, said at a board meeting on Tuesday, such as building and sidewalk repairs, road paving, and replacing cars and trucks.

Mr. Bernard said the draft budget complies with a policy of keeping new borrowing each year under the amount of debt that is being paid off, for a net decrease in the town’s indebtedness. The indebtedness in 2009 was $141 million, he said, which has since been reduced to approximately $100 million and is projected to drop to $92.3 million by the end of this year.

Payment on already incurred debt will cost the town about $15 million this year and next, and $14 million in 2019. Two bonds issued in 2010 and 2011 to cover a deficit that accumulated under a previous administration, totaling $22 million, will be paid off within the coming years; one by the end of next year, and the other in 2020.

Future town boards, saddled with less debt, Mr. Cantwell said, will have more flexibility in budgeting and addressing the needs of the town and its residents.

After designing a pilot program approved by the East Hampton Town Board through which restaurants in downtown Montauk can apply for approval to offer sidewalk dining within a set of guidelines, the town’s business advisory committee has turned its sights to the practice by some takeout food shops of offering a handful of seats for customers.

Under the town’s zoning code, takeout shops are classified as retail uses, which don’t allow for seating for diners, but Suffolk County Department of Health Services regulations allow up to 16 seats. The committee is discussing revisions to town law that would allow seating and is expected to make a recommendation on the matter to the town board.

The committee is also examining questions raised about having a paddleboard business based at a marina, according to Councilwoman Sylvia Overby, the committee’s liaison, and will offer comments on that to the town board as well.

In other news, the board will accept written comments through next Thursday on a proposal to install stop signs and create a four-way stop at the intersection of Wainscott Hollow Road, Five Rod Highway, and Main Street in Wainscott. The proposal was the subject of a hearing on March 16 that was held open until next week.

Brian Byrnes, a second-term Democratic member of the East Hampton Town Trustees, will not seek re-election in November, he told The Star this week, citing other commitments and hinting at interest in town board-appointed advisory boards. “I like the planning board, the Z.B.A.,” he said. “If that became available in a year or two, I would certainly take a look at that.”

“I’ve really enjoyed being a trustee,” Mr. Byrnes said on Tuesday. “It’s been a good experience, and I’d like to make that opportunity available to somebody else. . . . It’s time to move on, and I wanted to go out on a high note in case I wanted to do something else in town government.”

Other commitments, including to his family and to the Amagansett Fire Department, have contributed to his decision, he said. Mr. Byrnes, a manager of the Windmill Village and St. Michael’s housing complexes, said his ongoing efforts to recruit new volunteers for the fire department were not only important but time consuming as well.

With the Nov. 7 election in view, the two major political parties are preparing their slates of candidates for town board, trustee, and other positions. Tim Bock, Mr. Byrnes’s Republican colleague on the trustee board, also intends to step down after this year. Pat Mansir, a first-term Democrat, told The Star yesterday that she is undecided about seeking re-election.

All nine trustee seats will be up for grabs. Jim Grimes, a Republican, and the Democrats Bill Taylor, Rick Drew, Tyler Armstrong, and Francis Bock, the trustees’ clerk, have confirmed that they will run again. Diane McNally, a trustee and the body’s former clerk, had not returned a call as of noon yesterday.

Reg Cornelia, chairman of the East Hampton Republican Committee, said yesterday that the party had identified three or four potential town trustee candidates. “There are some very good ones out there, some who have served before, some who haven’t,” he said. “We might end up with four women trustee candidates, one of whom is a boat captain, another who works on a commercial fishing boat. I don’t know if that will be the final lineup, but that would be unique.”

While the local Republicans cannot hold an official nominating convention until the Suffolk County Republican Committee holds its own, Mr. Cornelia said, the party’s slate of candidates for town board is set. Manny Vilar will be the G.O.P. candidate for supervisor; Jerry Larsen and Paul Giardina will run for town board. Mr. Vilar is a sergeant with the State Parks Police. Mr. Larsen recently retired as chief of the East Hampton Village Police Department. Mr. Giardina, who recently retired, has served in management positions in government since 1975, both at the federal Environmental Protection Agency and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

“I think we have a very, very good slate this year,” Mr. Cornelia said. “Everyone has many years of managerial or executive experience.”

Supervisor Larry Cantwell, a Democrat, will not seek re-election. East Hampton Democrats have not yet announced their candidates for town board.

Rebates that could cover the full cost of new, nonpolluting septic systems for property owners in areas considered environmentally sensitive are outlined in draft legislation now before the East Hampton Town Board.

The legislation would require the installation of low-nitrogen-emission septics for new construction and whenever an older system is replaced, as well as when a substantial expansion of residences or buildings is undertaken. In certain instances, advanced technology systems also would be required for nonresidential properties subject to site plan review by the planning board.

Almost one-third of the developed lots in town are in a water protection district. According to studies done during the preparation of the town’s wastewater management plan, of approximately 19,400 developed parcels, more than 12,500 have antiquated cesspools, and 6,700 use leach-field systems to treat wastewater. Neither removes nitrogen.

Funding for the program would come from the community preservation fund, following the approval in November of a measure authorizing up to 20 percent of the revenue from the 2-percent real estate transfer tax to be used for water quality initiatives. 

According to the draft legislation, the owners of properties within water protection districts — land around harbors as well as high-density neighborhoods in Springs, downtown Montauk, and other areas considered high priority — could receive 100 percent of the cost of replacing a sanitary system with a low-nitrogen version, up to a maximum of $15,000. 

All owners of nonresidential property would be eligible for rebates. Otherwise, rebates would be based on income, with residential property owners eligible whose income qualifies them for a tax rebate under the state STAR program.

Those whose properties are not in a high-priority area could get rebates totaling 75 percent of a septic system replacement cost, capped at $10,000, or, if they meet the income standards to qualify for affordable housing, could have the entire cost, up to $15,000, covered.

The standard for a low-nitrogen sanitary system is now described as one that reduces nitrogen levels to 19 milligrams or less per liter in liquids released into the environment. In addition, the system must be a type approved by the Suffolk County Health Department. After trials over the last several years, the Health Department has approved several such systems, with cost estimates at approximately $16,000, although the cost is expected to drop. The Health Department also is expected to issue approvals for more effective systems that reduce nitrogen to 10 milligrams or less per liter, a standard that would be required in East Hampton once the legislation mandating low-nitrogen systems is in place.

Based on past community preservation fund revenue, the town expects $4.6 million to be available each year for water quality improvement projects. A public hearing will be held on the legislation before a town board vote to make it law. 

East Hampton Town

Support for Immigrants

In response to recent expressions nationwide of anti-immigrant sentiment and new federal immigration enforcement policy East Hampton Town’s Anti-Bias Task Force has issued a statement expressing its support “of our immigrant community members and their rights to be treated with respect.”

“Fear of deportation has shaken families . . . to the core,” the committee said in a March 13 press release. The task force “believes it is a moral obligation to treat others as we want to be treated.”

“It has been said,” the group wrote, “that the strength of our community and of our nation is in its people. We pride ourselves in being called a diverse society. We are a country of immigrants.”

The group reiterated its mission of helping community members facing bias and of working to “bring people together in dialogue and help[ing] to foster understanding and appreciation of diverse traditions while promoting unity.”

Chaired by Audrey Gaines, who can be reached by email at [email protected], the group is overseen by Town Councilwoman Sylvia Overby. J.P.

Seeking Recycling Help

The East Hampton Town Recycling and Litter Committee, which works to tackle roadside trash problems and encourage more recycling programs, is on the lookout for new members to join in its efforts. Those interested have been asked to contact Councilwoman Sylvia Overby, the town board’s liaison to the committee, at 631-324-2620 or by email at [email protected].

Southampton Town

A Bigger Meeting Space

Southampton Town officials have a bigger space at Town Hall in which to hold public hearings now that the auditorium, which had served as an office space and more recently as a storage area, has been cleared out. The town has held two hearings there in recent weeks pertaining to matters west of the canal, and it will be put to more use in the future.

Traffic Analysis Green-Lighted

After months of discussions among residents and town officials, the Southampton Town Board has awarded a bid for a pedestrian and traffic safety analysis of Bridgehampton’s Main Street. During a meeting last Thursday, the board approved a proposal from L.K. McLean Associates of Brookhaven with a price tag of $38,500 for the study’s first phase, in which engineers will review accident volume data, attend community meetings, and make recommendations for improving safety at specific locations. The first in-depth design in a second phase would cost $21,600.

In October, the town received five different proposals after having put out a request for proposals in late summer. The board was ready to approve McLean Associates’ proposal earlier this month, but needed to find funding, which was secured thanks to a surplus.

The Southampton Town Board is closing in on a much-anticipated pedestrian and traffic safety analysis of Bridgehampton’s Main Street. During a work session last Thursday, the board discussed how best to fund a study, and while the town comptroller was not able to find money from the source some board members would have preferred, funding has been identified.

State grants, totaling $700,000, were awarded to the town for lighting and crosswalk improvements along state-owned Montauk Highway over the summer. The town needs to provide the money up front, however, as the grant is a reimbursable one and does not cover initial planning and engineering design work.

In October, the town asked for a request for proposals for traffic safety engineers to look at 1.35 miles along Montauk Highway, from Lake Road to Lockwood Avenue, come up with safety recommendations, and consider how the back roads north and south of the highway would be affected by a traffic-calming project, Christine Fetten, the director of municipal works, told the board.

Work would be split into two phases. First, engineers would review accident volume data, attend community meetings, make recommendations, and provide options for improving safety at specific locations, followed by the second phase of implementing town-chosen recommendations, Ms. Fetten said.

The town received five different proposals. The lowest bidder was L.K. McLean Associates of Brookhaven. The firm has a long history of working with the town, including on the Bridgehampton hamlet study in 2004 and the reconfiguration of the Bridgehampton-Sag Harbor Turnpike in 2008. The price was $38,500 for the first phase and $21,600 for the first in-depth design in the second phase, plus $13,000 for each additional design.

While the amount was higher than Supervisor Jay Schneiderman anticipated — he said internal discussions had put the initial figure at about $20,000 — it is money the town has to spend, he said, and the rest of the board agreed that a resolution hiring McLean Associates for the work would be forthcoming.

“To spend $40,000 to get $700,000 — that’s a pretty good deal for us,” Mr. Schneiderman said.

The supervisor then turned to Leonard Marchese, the town comptroller, to find the money for the project, particularly the initial costs; the rest could be dealt with in next year’s budget, he said.

Mr. Marchese first suggested that McLean Associates be paid from the town’s surplus. Mr. Schneiderman and Councilwoman Christine Scalera both said they would rather that amount be pulled from lines in the 2017 budget, but, reached by phone on Monday, Mr. Marchese said he was not able to find any money in the budgeted lines and would be putting together a resolution for the board that would fund the study from the Department of Land Management’s surplus. The Finance Department has projected a $2.75 million surplus for that account by the end of the year.

The town board did express a concern that it would be funding design plans for a road in the state highway system. “I’m afraid we’re going to end up spending $40,000, and the state’s going to say, ‘Nah, we don’t want to do any of that stuff,’ ” Mr. Schneiderman said. He would like to get an idea of what the State Department of Transportation may or may not agree to, he said.

Ms. Fetten said coordinating with the state is important, but getting answers has been frustrating. “We were very hopeful that by this time we would have had the state’s pedestrian-safety report that we’ve been discussing in some of those past meetings, but we have not,” she said. “It’s been a little bit trying, but we’re hoping with the assistance of a design professional we can come up with a realistic set of goals.”

East Hampton Town

Resident Parking Only

New parking regulations along Landing Lane in Springs, a dead end on Accabonac Harbor that is often used by companies renting paddleboards and kayaks, will restrict parking to residents with permits.

According to a resolution passed on March 2 by the East Hampton Town Board, there will be resident-parking only from the road end at the launching ramp and water access to a point 300 feet along the east side of Landing Lane. No parking will be allowed along the west side of the road. 

David Lys, the proprietor of a business that often uses Landing Lane to park, had argued against the regulations, which could bar some of his customers from driving to the launch site. But town officials said concerns about maintaining public access for town residents outweighed the use of the waterfront location by a private business. 

Commercial Film Permit Hearing

A hearing will be held before the town board tonight on proposed legislation that would require permits for commercial film shoots on private property, in addition to the permits already required for filming on public land.

Permits would be required for filming both indoors and out, unless the photographer or filmmaker uses only handheld equipment that they carry themselves and no cables or other equipment are involved.

The town clerk would have the authority, without further review, to issue a permit for filming involving only still photography on private property, if it is determined that the shoot will not be disruptive or endanger public safety. Other film permit applications would be reviewed by a variety of town officials including the chief of police, the fire marshal, or others.

The hearing begins at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall.

A settlement has been reached between East Hampton Town and Jay Jacobs, an owner of the Hampton Country Day Camp in East Hampton, who was cited by East Hampton Town for using a house he owns at 17 Ocean Boulevard in East Hampton as a dormitory for camp staff. 

In a settlement agreement signed by the parties last month, Mr. Jacobs agreed to pay a $12,500 fine and the town agreed to support a move to adjourn, in contemplation of dismissal, charges for alleged town code violations that are pending in town justice court.

Mr. Jacobs will be barred from using the property as anything other than a single-family residence in which, according to town code, only up to four unrelated people may reside.

In August 2015, town officials issued 61 citations for fire, safety, and zoning code violations at the house, which the town alleged had been converted from a four-bedroom residence into a dormitory for 25 camp counselors. The town got a temporary restraining order to shut down use of the house and sought a more permanent court injunction barring the camp from housing more than four counselors there. 

Mr. Jacobs challenged the town’s position, and the town law that limits the number of unrelated people who may share a house to four. He charged that there was “unequal enforcement of the law,” citing a town decision that allowed the Ross School to house boarding students in residences as a functioning “family.” 

A State Supreme Court judged ruled against his motion to dismiss the case late last year, granting the injunction and upholding the town’s zoning restrictions.

According to the settlement agreement, applications to clear up any issues of noncompliance with the town code will be submitted to the town Building or Planning Departments within two months. 

The property owner has agreed to allow six unannounced inspections of the premises over the next two years for officials to ensure that conditions of the agreement are being met. Should any of the settlement conditions be violated, Mr. Jacobs will be subject to a $20,000 fine. 

Tonight, Walker Bragman has promised, “the town board will be delivered a strong message.” 

Mr. Bragman, 28, is spearheading a rally against drug addiction called The Kids Need a Space, to be held at 6 this evening in front of Town Hall, half an hour before the East Hampton Town Board begins its regular Thursday-night meeting there.

The message, on behalf of the nonprofit group East End New Leaders, is simple: The Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter must revert to its original purpose and provide young people with a place to go after school. 

Mr. Bragman, who grew up in East Hampton and frequented the RECenter as a teen, argues that since the Y.M.C.A. took over stewardship of the facility in 2011 it has been turned into a for-profit, taxpayer-subsidized gym, with minimal focus on providing teenagers with a space of their own. 

The campaign to make the RECenter more accessible and relevant to teens began in the summer of 2015, he said during a phone interview. “We thought this would be a noncontroversial issue. Who could possibly deny the importance of having a place for teenagers to spend time with their peers, other than in a party house?”

No one, except the town board, according to Mr. Bragman. “They have totally denied the community’s young people from having a space of their own by turning the RECenter into a for-profit business.” 

Under its current operating license with East Hampton Town, which owns the RECenter building, the town provides the Y.M.C.A. with $590,000 each year for operating expenses at the facility and is responsible for capital improvements to the building.

Under the contract, the Y.M.CA. is allowed to retain 10 percent of the income derived from operating the facility as an operating fee.

Once annual operating expenses are met, any revenue beyond that must be returned to East Hampton Town for a capital improvement reserve fund. Last year, $29,000 was returned to the town, and in 2014, approximately $27,000 was returned.  

In the face of a rising drug epidemic on the East End, Mr. Bragman, a law student, journalist, and activist, said there was an urgent need for teens to have a place to go and engage in self-directed activities. He acknowledged that while a space of their own is no cure-all, it would be a step in a positive direction. 

In an email to Mr. Bragman in September 2015, Councilwoman Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, the town board liaison to the Y.M.C.A. board of managers, countered Mr. Bragman’s demands and outlined a list of improvements the Y was planning to implement that fall, including a computer lab, learning labs, two 40-inch flat-screen televisions, Xbox, Nintendo Wii, and Netflix; interactive tablets, a performance stage, visual and audio arts capabilities, and D.J. equipment.

“I knew most of those things would never materialize,” Mr. Bragman said this week. “There are no tablets, and the TVs look like they’re from the 1960s.”

A post on the East End New Leaders Facebook page features photographs of the Y’s new teen center, showing a Foosball table and a collection of books for very young readers. “Looks pretty barren,” says the caption, “more like a nursery for parents who want to work out. Our guess: Most kids don’t go there because they don’t want to hang out at a gym. . . . We can do better.”

At tonight’s rally, Mr. Bragman said, the group, which recently received its 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, plans to “speak out and let [the town board] know we’re not going to tolerate their false promises any longer, and that if they do renew the existing contract in 2018, there will be political consequences.”

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Correction: This article has been updated to include details of the town's licensing agreement with the Y.M.C.A. that were not part of the original article that appeared in print and online. 

East Hampton Town is continuing its focus on achieving its goal of using 100 percent renewable energy, and an expected $100,000 state grant will give a boost to those efforts.

The town is eligible for the grant, issued by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, as it has met the criteria to become a “clean energy community,” Kim Shaw, East Hampton’s director of natural resources, reported recently to the town board. 

To do so, she said, East Hampton has completed several “high-impact actions,” as designated by NYSERDA, to “implement clean energy actions, save energy costs, create jobs, and improve the environment,” according to the agency. 

The initiatives, overseen by the town’s Natural Resources Department, have included converting streetlights to energy-efficient LED technology, instituting a Clean Fleet program by using alternative-fuel vehicles and installing electric vehicle charging stations, training building inspectors in implementation of the state building code regarding energy efficiency, creating an incentive program for the installation of solar energy systems, and adopting a “benchmarking” program, a policy through which the town tracks and reports on energy usage in its buildings while identifying ways to reduce energy waste and publicly reporting that progress. 

At a meeting of the town board last week, Ms. Shaw recommended using the $100,000 award to replace lighting in at least seven town buildings with energy-efficient systems and to obtain new electric cars and charging stations.

Six charging stations could be installed throughout the town not only to serve the town’s cars but to encourage residents to choose electric vehicles as well. In addition to the overall NYSERDA grant, Ms. Shaw said, the town would be eligible for rebates on leases for the electric cars of up to $5,000 from the state and up to $7,000 in federal money.

Advanced technology will allow fast charging of the cars, which are expected to be able to travel 140 miles on each charge, Ms. Shaw said.

The town’s Human Services Department has been using hybrid electric cars, Councilwoman Kathee Burke-Gonzalez said, but the seven hours required to recharge them compromises their efficiency. 

The new lighting will not only be paid for by the grant money, Councilman Peter Van Scoyoc pointed out, but will provide ongoing savings to the town on energy costs.

The board will have to formally approve the projects for which the NYSERDA money will be used and submit that information to the state for final approval and issuing of the grant. 

At a January meeting, Supervisor Larry Cantwell had pressed for a focus on solar energy installations. However, for this grant program, Ms. Shaw explained, the funded projects must be completed within a short time period, and planning for a solar installation would take too long.

Nonetheless, the Natural Resources Department, she said, is analyzing the feasibility of solar energy installations on various town buildings. Those projects could be funded using other grant programs. 

Grant money is currently available, she said, for installing solar power systems at affordable housing sites such as the St. Michael’s senior housing and Windmill affordable apartment complexes, and that possibility is being studied, she said.