Government

The National Weather Service has forecast a 55-percent chance of a below-normal season for the Atlantic basin, with three to six hurricanes, one to three of them major. The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season started on June 1 and continues through Nov. 30.

Suffolk County Justice James F. Quinn issued a temporary restraining order this week preventing East Hampton Town from closing on its controversial purchase of 549 and 550 Wainscott Northwest Road in Wainscott.

East Hampton Town Councilman Tom Flight and Francis Bock, the town trustees' presiding officer, endorsed Jerry Larsen's campaign for town supervisor on Sunday in Montauk, a potentially seismic event in a campaign that pits the incumbent supervisor, Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, against the East Hampton Village mayor in the June 23 Democratic primary.

With less than a month before the primary that will provide the Democratic Party with its nominee for East Hampton Town supervisor, both candidates are similarly funded.

A two-year-old case about a crowing rooster in Springs has finally been dismissed, with prejudice. “If the town wants to prohibit (or otherwise regulate) noise from roosters, or any other livestock, they need to do so explicitly in their local code,” wrote East Hampton Town Justice David Filer.

The East Hampton Town Board unanimously supported the acquisition of 134 Second House Road in Montauk, better known as the Pathfinder Country Day Camp, earlier this month.

The East Hampton Town Planning Board will hold a public hearing Wednesday on the proposed Springs Brewery, at 847 Springs-Fireplace Road.

In the latest twist to a long-running dispute between East Hampton Town and Marc Rowan, who owns Duryea’s Lobster Deck in Montauk, a New York State Supreme Court judge has granted the town’s motion to vacate a 2019 stipulation of settlement with Mr. Rowan, and directed that the status quo be maintained pending determination of the various proceedings and appeals before the court.

Bamboo and cemeteries make terrible bedfellows, and Most Holy Trinity Cemetery on Cedar Street has a burgeoning bamboo problem.

Este, a 39-seat restaurant under construction adjacent to Offshore Montauk, was called back before the board to discuss discrepencies between what the board approved and what seems to be in the works based on an investment packet leaked to the press and the restaurant’s application to the New York State Liquor Authority.

One year to the day after an ivy-covered trellis fell over at Millstone Park, off Main Street in East Hampton Village, a plan to cover the side of the commercial building the trellis had obscured was revealed.

East Hampton Village officials will conduct a survey of stores on Main Street and Newtown Lane regarding the potential extension of the street parking limit from one to two hours, and ending that limit at 5 p.m. rather than the current 7 p.m. 

The implementation of a plan to reduce the flow of stormwater entering the 24-inch pipe that drains into Georgica Pond at the terminus of Cove Hollow Road in East Hampton Village was unveiled last week.

A beneficiary of the trust that controls 13.5 acres of land in Wainscott accused the East Hampton Town Board Tuesday of misrepresenting how the town would use the land after a proposed purchase. 

The Jewish Center of the Hamptons, after filing in court to annul a building inspector’s determination that essentially prevented it from enclosing two porches, was back before the village Z.B.A. earlier this month, seeking approval for what it initially asked for.

Mayor Jerry Larsen led a village board discussion on extending a ban on gas or diesel-powered leaf blowers last week. “The idea is to be consistent with the other municipalities,” he said.

After an East Hampton Town Board discussion this week on proposed employer-sponsored housing legislation, it was clear that changes would be made and another hearing would be needed on the proposed code changes.

In East Hampton Village residents with applications before land-use boards have received electronic communications purporting to be from the village and indicating that fees are due and must be paid. The messages, “however real they may appear, are not coming from the village and are not due or payable to the village,” the zoning board's attorney said.

The Town of East Hampton was awarded $7.04 million to build 16 houses at Cantwell Court on May 13, when the New York State Department of Homes and Community Renewal met to authorize the grant. 

A mostly cordial debate on May 13 that centered on affordable housing and recent woes at the East Hampton Town Building Department likely gave both Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez and her Democratic primary challenger, Mayor Jerry Larsen, an opportunity to claim victory. 

Suffolk County Legislator Ann Welker has endorsed the campaign of Chris Gallant, a candidate challenging Republican Representative Nick LaLota in New York’s First Congressional District.

The town board unanimously passed the East Hampton Public Safety and Accountability Law this week, making clear that the federal government has every right to enforce its laws but clarifies the role of local law enforcement when such actions occur.

Several applications from East Hampton and Southampton shellfish farmers will be under discussion Monday in Riverhead, for a county lease program that has proven controversial.

According to recent filings made to the Suffolk County Board of Elections, East Hampton Mayor Jerry Larsen has returned $33,000 in donations made to his Jerry Larsen for Town Supervisor campaign following the East Hampton Town Democratic Committee’s accusation after his January filing that he had accepted donations over the legal limit.

Twenty people spoke at an East Hampton Town Board public hearing last week on a potential 13.5-acre land acquisition in Wainscott, most in favor of the town’s plan to use $3.975 million in community housing funds to buy the parcels at 549 and 550 Wainscott Northwest Road.

Only two people spoke in favor of legislation that would allow “employer sponsored” housing to be developed within East Hampton at a public hearing last week: the prospective developer and his lawyer. Seven residents spoke against the proposal.

Richard Normoyle, East Hampton Town’s principal building inspector, spoke about 2025 accomplishments and 2026 goals at Tuesday’s town board meeting in Montauk, but all anyone wanted to hear was how long it will take to get a building permit if they were to apply for one today.

Seven potential water quality improvement grant projects were introduced to the East Hampton Town Board last week and two either directly or indirectly benefit Rita Cantina, the Mexican eatery in Springs that has been a party in a multiyear lawsuit against the town and has consistently angered close neighbors.

The East Hampton Town Trustees voted unanimously to allocate $89,100 for a 2026 water quality monitoring program as proposed by Christopher Gobler of Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences.

Gov. Kathy Hochul endorsed East Hampton Town Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez Monday morning, just two days before her high-stakes debate with East Hampton Village Mayor Jerry Larsen, who has run a tough Democratic primary race against the incumbent.