East Hampton Village Board meetings will once again be held in person starting July 30, Mayor Jerry Larsen announced at the board's organizational meeting last Thursday.
Board meetings have been predominantly held online since April of last year, shortly after the onset of the pandemic. When the in-person meetings resume, Mr. Larsen said on Tuesday, the village will take a hybrid approach similar to the East Hampton Town Board, which met in person for the first time in 16 months last Thursday.
The public can either attend at the Emergency Services Building or watch the proceedings on LTV, the public access television station, and call in to comment.
At the start of last Thursday's meeting, Mr. Larsen apologized for the village's failure to put out American flags on June 19 in honor of the first observance of Juneteenth — a day that commemorates the end of slavery in the nation — as a federal holiday. "It was my oversight that flags were not put up," he said. "I take full responsibility for that, and the only thing I can say is that moving forward we'll do a better job."
The board recently approved a proposal to combine the five-person planning and design review boards into a single, seven-person board starting Sept. 1. Last week, Robert Caruso, the chairman of the D.R.B., was appointed as chairman of the new board. John McGuirk was reappointed as chairman of the zoning board of appeals, and, after accepting Carrie Doyle's resignation from the planning board, the board appointed her a member of the Z.B.A.
David Driscoll and Gusty Folks were appointed to the planning board. Frank Newbold, the former chairman of the zoning board of appeals, Pamela Bennett, the village clerk, and the Very Rev. Denis Brunelle of St. Luke's Episcopal Church were reappointed to the ethics board, with Mr. Newbold as chairman. All the appointments are effective Aug. 1.
The board accepted the resignation of Robert Hefner, the longtime director of historic services, effective July 31, and approved an agreement to hire him as a consultant for up to $20,000 annually.
The board also approved the hiring of Meghan L. Harris as a full-time member of the Village Police Department. "She's going to be another great asset to the department," said Chief Michael Tracey.
