Government

Two areas off the South Shore of Long Island that had been identified as potential federal lease areas for development of offshore wind will not be considered for leases, an official of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management said last week.

A multiyear effort to save the Springs house and studios of the Abstract Expressionist artists James Brooks and Charlotte Park may yet have a happy ending, despite a demolition permit, approved by the architectural review board in January 2020, that is "still on the table," according to a co-chairman of the East Hampton Arts Council.

A renewed push to seek a not-for-profit entity to manage the property follows Preservation Long Island's issue of an "alert" status as to the structures' potential demolition, and the organization has asked the town to rescind the demolition permit.

A proposal that will allow East Hampton Village restaurants, including those at its historic inns, to operate outdoor dining areas, and one that will allow the village to sell monthlong nonresident beach parking permits, were approved in party-line votes at a village board meeting on Friday.

Seeking a site for the construction of a sewage treatment facility, the East Hampton Village Board narrowed the options down to two village-owned properties at a meeting on Friday. In the running are a vacant lot just north of the railroad trestle on North Main Street, and the Accabonac Road parcel that is home to the Department of Public Works.

A request from State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele and environmental advocates that East Hampton Town allocate 2 percent of funds it receives from the Peconic Bay Region's Community Preservation Fund to the Peconic Estuary Partnership was endorsed by the town board on Tuesday.

A seven-acre property at 403 Abraham’s Path in Amagansett is the site for a proposed new East Hampton Town senior citizens center.

East Hampton Town is seeking additional volunteers to help staff a first-dose vaccination clinic on Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. at its Center for Humanities on Stephen Hand's Path. Those interested have been asked to call Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc's office on Friday.

Bay Street Theater’s plans for a new theater complex adjacent to Steinbeck Park in Sag Harbor may be too ambitious for the good of the village, Mayor Kathleen Mulcahy said. “We want to keep Bay Street in Sag Harbor, but we don’t want to be a local theater surrounded by a village.”

For elderly residents still in need of a Covid-19 vaccination, including the homebound and those lacking the computer skills needed to schedule an appointment, East Hampton Town is offering help through the Human Services Department, and other organizations are also looking to help.

The removal of a mulberry tree, native beach plums and roses, and other plants in late March was one outcome of Southampton Town maintenance workers coming to "scrape" the parking lot at Long Beach to prevent vegetation from encroaching. But not only did the plants serve as habitats for many native animals, environmental advocates say, they also anchored the beach against erosion.

The East Hampton Town Board took a step closer to adopting a more stringent building code at its work session on Tuesday. Among other things, the new law would require new construction and major renovations to achieve maximum efficiency through technology and design, in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

CSEA members ratified the agreement in an April 7 vote, with 74 percent in favor. The ratification, announced in a statement issued from Town Hall on Tuesday, comes more than two years after the previous contract expired. Negotiations commenced in 2018, prior to its expiration, but a mediator was called in when the parties reached an impasse.