A swearing-in, two promotions, one retirement, and a cautionary tale of the hazards of transportation via e-bike occupied the East Hampton Village Board when it met on Friday.
Jason Tuma, a Montauk native, was sworn in and attended his first meeting as a village board member. He succeeds Sarah Amaden, who was elected in 2022 but told her colleagues in August that she could not devote the time required to fulfill her duties owing to a travel schedule and other personal reasons. The board had passed resolutions at its Sept. 26 meeting accepting Ms. Amaden’s resignation, effective Sept. 30, and appointing Mr. Tuma, effective Oct. 1.
Like Ms. Amaden at the time of her election, Mr. Tuma is a newcomer to government. A graduate of East Hampton High School, he has lived in the village since 2013.
“We’re really looking forward to working with Jason,” Mayor Jerry Larsen said.
Chief Jeffrey Erickson of the Police Department spoke about the retirement of Lt. Greg Brown and the promotions of Eben Ball to the rank of lieutenant and Steven Niggles to the rank of sergeant.
Lieutenant Brown joined the department full time in October 2000, the chief said, but served in a part-time capacity for some years before that. “So about 30 years of service to the Village Police Department,” Chief Erickson said. “Through that, he’s held the ranks of police officer, detective, detective sergeant, and lieutenant. I would like to wish him the very best. I thank him for his service to the Police Department.”
Lieutenant Ball was hired in 2008, Chief Erickson said, after serving as a traffic control officer from 2001 to 2006. He was promoted to sergeant in November 2021. He has served as a patrol sergeant, with a unit that the chief described as specialized officers who respond to quality-of-life issues for residents, and also leads the department’s school resource officers, who provide security for the John M. Marshall Elementary School and the East Hampton Middle School.
He is “behind the scenes,” the chief said, with special events including parades, the Tuesdays at Main Beach summer concerts, and the village’s block party. “It’s a great day for Eben and his family, for the Police Department, to move up from the rank of sergeant to lieutenant,” the chief said. “It’s well earned.”
Sergeant Niggles “is another individual in the department that has excelled,” the chief said. He was hired in 2009 after also serving as a T.C.O. He, too, serves in the unit responding to quality-of-life issues and has served as a school resource officer. “He’s also the head of the [Police Benevolent Association] and he has done a fantastic job with that,” the chief said. “It’s an honor and a privilege to have Steve move up the ranks to become a sergeant.”
“It’s such an accomplishment to get to those ranks,” said the mayor, who was chief of the department before being elected mayor. “It’s really nice to see, and it’s really exciting for me because I hired both of these guys when I was police chief.”
Urging E-Bike Caution
Also at the meeting, a Ross School senior encouraged all cyclists to use caution when on the roads. Raphael Amit told the board that in August, as he rode an e-bike to his job at a sailing club in Sag Harbor, “I was doing everything right. I had a helmet on. I was following all the rules.” The roads were not congested, he said, and he was nearly to his destination when, on a “really, really small side street . . . a big work van turned left and struck me on my bike. I flew off the bike. I broke my leg, my collarbone. My face was all shattered, bleeding.”
Fortunately, a first responder was nearby. Raphael was hospitalized and underwent surgery. Speaking with his father during his first night in the hospital, “I said, ‘I’m going to have to run a marathon.’ “ He could not move one leg, and could barely move his hands. “My dad said, ‘Yeah, that’s good, but you also have to raise awareness. This can’t happen to anyone else.’ “
His recovery was long, including a nine-times-per-week physical therapy regimen. “Finally, a year later, I ran a marathon,” he said. “I’m back to playing sports and all my normal activities, but I still have the rod and the screws in my leg, and those are going to stay there.” But, he added, “they also bring a determination to make a change. . . . I’m living proof that even if you do all the things right — you wear a helmet, follow the traffic rules, ride in daylight — things can still happen.”
He wants to emphasize the importance of helmets and of following the rules of the road, he told the board. “I want everyone to educate themselves, and parents to educate their kids, and kids to maybe think twice before getting on the bike. And if they do decide that that’s the right thing for them, definitely wear a helmet and definitely follow the precautions and keep yourself as safe as possible.” E-bikes are “a great way to get around,” he said, “and safe e-bike use is definitely an attainable goal, and it’s an important one that’s worth working toward.”
He is giving presentations to middle-school children at the Ross School, he said, “and hopefully soon I’m going to do it to all the local middle schools, just to make sure that the kids really know the importance of wearing a helmet, through my firsthand experience. . . . I want to put our town and our youth on the road to safety.”
