Significant changes are in store in Wainscott, the "gateway" to the Town of East Hampton.
One already visible manifestation of change is the Wainscott Green, the 1.1-acre park that was dedicated in a Dec. 6 ceremony to the late Rick Del Mastro, a former chairman of the hamlet's citizens advisory committee who died in April. A car wash was once envisioned at the site; instead, the town bought the parcel in 2018 and demolished the derelict nightclub known over the years variously as the Star Room and the Swamp.
In September, the Peconic Land Trust acquired the 1.4-acre property on Georgia Pond that had housed a restaurant for more than 50 years, with plans to restore it to its natural state. Removal of the site's septic system is expected to supplement ongoing efforts to improve the pond's degraded water quality.
And on Tuesday, the East Hampton Town Board announced a Jan. 19 work session at which the Planning Department will present an overview of procedures to rezone the hamlet's commercial corridor. That will allow implementation of recommendations made in the Wainscott hamlet study, which was adopted and added to the town's comprehensive plan in May.
Prepared by consultants with input from residents and town officials, the Wainscott study sought to address a lack of pedestrian connectivity and outdoor space, as well as haphazard development of the commercial district, with many curb cuts and uncoordinated parking lots lending it a strip-mall look and feel. On Tuesday, Councilwoman Sylvia Overby reiterated the wish to create an aesthetically pleasing commercial core, minimize dependence on automobiles in favor of a walkable hamlet, improve parking accommodations, and reduce traffic congestion.
The hamlet's former sand and gravel mine is also to be redeveloped, with conceptual plans including single-family and affordable housing and a park, Ms. Overby said. A transportation hub also could be sited there.
Wainscott businesses could benefit from shared parking, Ms. Overby said, possibly allowing them to provide fewer spaces than now required, resulting in a "more cohesive way to traverse and use all of the properties."
A park is envisioned at the eastern end of the business district, where a rest area sits between Montauk Highway and the pond. Plans are still in development, but "we're looking at beautifying the entire area from the gateway to the end of the commercial area," Ms. Overby said.
Wainscott's commercial core "would function in a much better way if we can make sure it isn't just a hamlet you drive through," she said. "That was a concern from the very beginning, that Wainscott has a personality and we wanted that to shine."
In its present form, "a number of residents have referred to Wainscott as a drive-through hamlet," said Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc. The hamlet "evolved as a kind of strip mall, not particularly aesthetically pleasing," he said. "It's also important to mention, this will be an effort that will directly engage residents of Wainscott and business owners to work on further development and advancement of the hamlet plan."
