Skip to main content

Montauk South Lake Beach Remediation Proposed

Thu, 09/23/2021 - 06:45

A plan to revitalize the southern part of Lake Montauk and the beach at the end of South Lake Drive was presented to the East Hampton Town Board on Tuesday.

Stormwater runoff is one culprit blamed for impaired water quality at the beach there, which has traditionally been used by families, particularly those with small children, owing to its tranquil waters. Outdated septic systems in the area and poor tidal flushing are also blamed. 

The Suffolk County Health Department closed South Lake Drive as a public beach in 2005, Mellissa Winslow, a senior environmental analyst in the town's natural resources department, told the board. There is a "strong need for remediation," she said. A project to control and mitigate stormwater runoff was included in the town's water quality improvement plan in 2016, she said, and the town's water quality technical advisory committee recommended that stormwater abatement projects move forward at South Lake Drive. "This is one of our first steps in improving water quality in Lake Montauk."

To make better use of the space, the project aims to capture and treat stormwater runoff by promoting infiltration and natural treatment, and to remove invasive species and restore native habitat, Ms. Winslow said. A conceptual proposal included regrading the parking area to direct runoff toward a pervious swale located at the lowest point of the lot. 

Ian Hanbach of the LaGuardia Design Group, landscape architects, presented maps depicting existing site conditions and a preliminary concept design, for review and comment by the board and the public. At the heart of LaGuardia's design proposal, he said, is a native vegetated bioswale, a rain garden that would slow, filter, and promote percolation of groundwater before it reaches the shoreline. 

A dry stream bed would see a series of dams spanning it to filter and reduce the velocity of stormwater runoff from the parking area and South Lake Drive. They would also serve as weirs during heavy storm surge events. "The idea is to manage stormwater runoff with green infrastructure," Mr. Hanbach said, rather than structures like dry wells. 

Nonnative and invasive species that have outcompeted native plant communities would be removed, he added. A composting toilet, which he said is underused, would also be removed and replaced with native vegetation. The existing comfort station would be reconfigured to be more aesthetically pleasing, and its septic system replaced with an innovative alternative model that dramatically reduces nitrogen and phosphorous leaching. A picnic area shaded with trees would also be added. 

The parking area would be reconfigured, its impervious asphalt reduced in area and replaced with a permeable surface. The proposal includes delineated parking spaces, where none exist at present, and intuitive and efficient traffic circulation. An informational kiosk would offer information on the native plant species and other details about the project. Board members were pleased with the proposal, but surmised that the improved aesthetics would draw more visitors. That would require more parking than envisaged by the designers. 

Villages

Springs Food Pantry Sees the Need, Addresses It

The last few years have presented challenges the Springs Food Pantry’s founders could not have anticipated when it was first established. More than 600 families are now registered to receive the assistance it provides, and an average of 355 families are served each week.

Jun 26, 2025

A Newsletter on Being a Jew in Today’s America

One of the essential roles of religion, Rabbi Jan Uhrbach of the Bridge Shul in Bridgehampton said this week, is to “help us hold onto our humanity, and remind us of the higher values that go beyond money and power and position and all of those things, in a time when the values that I hold dear are not only being violated, they’re being rejected as values.”

Jun 26, 2025

Item of the Week: The Hemerocallis Garden, 1962

Hemerocallis may be an unfamiliar term, but the garden adjacent to Clinton Academy once bore the name. This photo shows the gate to the garden some two decades after its establishment in 1941.

Jun 26, 2025

 

Your support for The East Hampton Star helps us deliver the news, arts, and community information you need. Whether you are an online subscriber, get the paper in the mail, delivered to your door in Manhattan, or are just passing through, every reader counts. We value you for being part of The Star family.

Your subscription to The Star does more than get you great arts, news, sports, and outdoors stories. It makes everything we do possible.