At the East Hampton Town Board’s final meeting of 2023, there were fond farewells upon the retirement of Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc and Councilwoman Sylvia Overby, and a proclamation for Rebecca Morgan Taylor, the executive director of Project Most, recognizing her nearly two decades of service to the children and families of the town.
Councilwoman Cate Rogers, who was elected to the board in 2021, thanked Mr. Van Scoyoc and Ms. Overby for their service, and “for all the help and mentoring that you’ve given me, and the patience with onboarding a new member.”
Councilman David Lys told them that “it’s been a pleasure to see your dedicated work, both of you, for the benefit of our hometown. . . . You did your homework, always, and you exemplified exactly what a sitting councilmember, supervisor, is supposed to do.”
Councilwoman Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, who will be sworn in as supervisor on Tuesday, spoke of “how you’ve positioned us and advanced us for the future on so many levels. I’m really proud to say that we’re elected officials from East Hampton, because we’ve led. It was because you folks were at the helm.”
Ms. Overby thanked her colleagues on the board, the town employees, and residents. “It’s been such a privilege and an honor to serve my community,” she said. “It’s not just about the place, but it’s about people, and how many people you impact.” Her colleagues “have been with me through a lot of ups and downs,” she said. “I’ll miss you.”
Mr. Van Scoyoc thanked residents “for their faith and confidence” in electing him. Before his three terms as supervisor, he served two as a councilman. He said that being supervisor “has been the most challenging and yet rewarding endeavor I’ve ever been involved with.”
He, too, thanked town employees and his colleagues on the board. To Ms. Overby, with whom he was elected to the board in 2011, he said that it seemed “quite appropriate that we came in together and we’re going out together, and we’re passing the baton on to our fellow board members.” To them, he said that “I can retire from public service knowing that the people of East Hampton will continue to be served very well and will benefit from your energy, intelligence, and dedication as we face a myriad of issues in the community.”
“In all,” he said, “I’m just really so blessed to be here, be part of this community, and to have had this opportunity to serve.”
In regular business last Thursday, the board scheduled a public hearing for next Thursday on what is known as a “Monroe Analysis” of the new senior citizens center, to be built on Abraham’s Path in Amagansett. The analysis is an inquiry that a municipality must apply to consider exempting such a project from its zoning process and laws.
Another public hearing next Thursday will be on amending the town code to prohibit bicycles and skateboards on sidewalks in the downtown areas of Amagansett and Montauk, and on the east side of North Main Street in East Hampton between Collins Avenue and Floyd Street. The proposed code amendment would also prohibit electric bicycles, scooters, skateboards, or unicycles on any sidewalk in the town, exclusive of incorporated villages.
The board’s meeting next Thursday will start at 6 p.m.
Another resolution passed last Thursday authorized the appointment of Samantha Klein, a senior environmental analyst in the town’s Natural Resources Department, as the town’s Climate Smart Communities coordinator. New York State’s Climate Smart Communities program supports local governments in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to the effects of climate change. Appointing a coordinator is a requirement for updating the town’s Climate Smart Communities certification.
On the affordable housing front, the board passed a resolution to authorize payment of up to $500 to Liberty Property Services to file the subdivision map of 395 Pantigo Road in East Hampton, which will be known as Cantwell Court and where 16 detached affordable houses are to be constructed, with Suffolk County. Another resolution authorized a notice to bidders for a road and drainage project for that development. Bids are due by Jan. 11, 2024.
The board also approved use of money from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 for a rehabilitation of the Star Island dock in Montauk.
