Government

The East Hampton Town Trustees unanimously approved signing on to the joint proposal submitted two weeks ago by Orsted U.S. Offshore Wind and Eversource Energy to the New York State Public Service Commission in support of the proposed South Fork Wind farm, to be situated approximate-ly 35 miles off Montauk Point.

Without federal assistance, the county will be forced to make significant reductions in transit services in the 2021 budget, and could eliminate 19 bus routes, including the 10C, which loops between East Hampton and Montauk, and the 10B, which loops between East Hampton, Springs, and Bridgehampton.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo delivered some of his sharpest criticism of President Trump and his administration’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic on Thursday, repeatedly calling the federal government’s response incompetent and accusing the president of politicizing and lying about the crisis. 

The developers of the proposed South Fork Wind farm filed a joint proposal with the New York State Public Service Commission last Thursday in support of an application for a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need under Article VII of the Public Service Law. 

After having wrapped up 20 years of service on the East Hampton Village Board, and following an unsuccessful run for mayor in last week's election, Barbara Borsack, who was the first woman to be elected to the board, said she is now deciding how best to apportion a sudden surplus of free time.

In his first week in office, Jerry Larsen, who ran on a platform to bring change to the village and won in a landslide in the Sept. 15 election, discussed his new proposals for parking, the renovation of Herrick Park, sidewalk repair, police reform, and more.

Following the Sept. 15 elections for mayor and two seats on the East Hampton Village Board, Mayor Jerry Larsen and his NewTown Party running mates Chris Minardi and Sandra Melendez, the newly-elected trustees, were sworn in at the village board meeting on Friday.

Temperatures are cooling and concern over the coronavirus persists as fall begins, but restaurants in the Town of East Hampton may have an opportunity to extend an unprecedented tourist season by continuing to offer as much as 100 percent of their seating capacity outside.

At its meeting last Thursday, the East Hampton Town Board passed a resolution declaring that the Car Free Day Long Island designation applies in the town, that the town supports residents and visitors who "conduct their daily activities car free or car lite for the day thereby lessening congestion on our roads and improving the quality of the air," and asking town employees to be mindful of vehicle use.

The East Hampton Town Board will hold a public hearing next Thursday at 2 p.m. on a recommendation from its water quality technical advisory committee that it award more than $500,000, or possibly more than $750,000, to four, or possibly five, projects using money from the portion of the community preservation fund allocated to water quality improvements.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has announced that the plastic bag ban will be enforced as of Oct. 19.

Records obtained this week by this newspaper show that Southampton Town has levied three formal charges against one of the event companies that produced a July 25 concert in Water Mill by the Chainsmokers, the chart-topping duo of D.J.s known for catchy electronica anthems and collaborations with other popular artists.

The Suffolk County Department of Public Works is making its way along Springs-Fireplace Road in a $7.3 million reconstruction project. The project extends from the North Main Street-Three Mile Harbor Road intersection north to Woodbine Drive. Its goals include improved roadway surfacing, the alleviation of flooding and ponding during rainstorms, and easier maneuverability for pedestrians and cyclists and is expected to be finished by the spring.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic Party's nominee for president, has announced his support for Nancy Goroff, the Democrats' candidate in New York's First Congressional District.

Over the furious objection of one member and after prolonged argument, the East Hampton Town Board agreed on Tuesday that a detailed environmental review is not needed for zoning change to allow a Stony Brook Southampton Hospital emergency room annex to be built on Pantigo Place.

Making his first bid for elective office in East Hampton Village, Jerry Larsen, the village's former police chief, was the high vote-getter in the three-person race for mayor on Tuesday, winning in a landslide against Barbara Borsack, the deputy mayor, who has been a member of the village board since 2000, and Arthur Graham, a trustee since 2017. 

A State Supreme Court justice upheld an expanded permit for the Sand Land mine in Noyac, awarded by the State Department of Environmental Conservation in 2019. The permit has been tied up in litigation ever since.

Land use trends, traffic, pollution, and future growth potential were among the matters considered when the East Hampton Town Board was updated on an ongoing evaluation of issues affecting the Springs-Fireplace Road corridor. 

Since its implementation last year, the Suffolk311 call center for non-emergency inquiries has received over 110,000 calls from residents across the county, 91,661 of them between March and September of this year.

Two pumpout boats owned and operated by the East Hampton Town Trustees were in particularly heavy use this summer, especially the one based at the Star Island municipal marina in Lake Montauk. The coronavirus pandemic, the trustees maintain, is behind the surge in boating activity, as well as boaters’ eschewing of showers and other public facilities at marinas in favor of those on board. 

Jerry Larsen was elected East Hampton Village mayor on Tuesday, bringing to a close a campaign that was unusual both for its length and frequent conflict among the top-line candidates.

Deputy Mayor Barbara Borsack and Trustee Arthur Graham came in second and third, respectively, when the absentee votes were counted. 

With hours to go before the polls close, Jerry Larsen, a candidate for East Hampton Village mayor in Tuesday's election, has signaled that he intends to contest the results of the election and ask that all ballots, voting machines, and objections to ballots be impounded.

New York State's hemp pilot research program has grown from two growers and 30 acres in 2016 to more than 500 producers and 20,000 acres this year, but is set to expire on Oct. 31, and participants in the state's budding hemp industry are nervous about changes in state and federal regulations that they say could have catastrophic consequences just as the industry is starting to thrive.

Elections for East Hampton Village mayor and two open trustee seats will be held on Tuesday. Voting will take place at the Emergency Services Building at 1 Cedar Street from noon to 9 p.m.

The village plans to develop an affordable housing program that will be overseen by East Hampton Housing Authority, the village board announced at a meeting last Thursday.

The angry exchanges resumed on Tuesday when the East Hampton Town Board again discussed Stony Brook Southampton Hospital's planned emergency room annex ahead of a vote on the proposal's environmental impact that is expected next Tuesday. 

Sag Harbor Village Mayor Kathleen Mulcahy presented detailed goals for a proposal to impose a six-month moratorium on commercial redevelopment in the village's waterfront area at a board meeting on Tuesday. 

In a watershed moment this week, the Southampton Town Board voted unanimously Tuesday in support of the Graves Protection Act and the Shinnecock Hills Building Moratorium. 

A second public hearing on community choice aggregation, a program that allows a local government to procure electricity and/or natural gas on behalf of its residents, businesses, and municipal accounts from a provider other than an area's traditional utility, will happen during the East Hampton Town Board's meeting next Thursday. 

Groundwater contamination in the hamlet of Wainscott was not caused by a 70.5-acre former sand and gravel mine in that hamlet, according to a new determination by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.