When Santa Claus visited Long Wharf on Dec. 9 as part of the Sag Harbor Chamber of Commerce’s tree-lighting festivities, what families may not have known was that the man originally slated to play the role, Ken Dorph, had been asked to return his red suit to the chamber three days earlier. 

The East Hampton Presbyterian Church’s “Wonderful Christmastime” holiday handbell concert is on Friday, and on Saturday at St. Luke's there's a performance of the “Christmas Oratorio” by Camille Saint-Saens and a singalong with a full choir.

A gingerbread house contest sponsored by Project Most will wrap up with a free party and judging on Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Most Holy Trinity school building on Meadow Way. 

With the winter holiday season in full swing, efforts are afoot in Bridgehampton to help those in need.

Paid Announcement: Deborah L. Thompson, 73, peacefully passed away at her home in Montauk while surrounded by family on Dec. 6, 2023.

After months of discussion prompted by a fatal fire in Noyac last summer, the Sag Harbor Village Board has amended its seasonal-use dwelling-unit law, resolving Tuesday night to require the addition of a rental registry permit. The intent of the new law, which takes effect on Jan. 1, is to ensure the safety of rented properties, in accordance with New York State Code.

Town, county, and state officials were in a celebratory mood last week at Town Hall, toasting the electricity that began flowing from the South Fork Wind farm through 78 miles of underwater cable to a LIPA substation here.

Small house, small addition, small parcel, big problem. That was the sense at the meeting last month of the East Hampton Town Zoning Board of Appeals as it discussed a 707-square-foot house on Mulford Lane on Napeague, built before the adoption of zoning, that needs a natural resources special permit and variances before it can add a small addition and outdoor shower and rebuild a deck.

As the town prepares to start clearing next month at the Amagansett site where the new center will be built, the two people who spoke at a public hearing on the project both said the town may be moving too fast and that there are questions that should be answered first.

It was a good run for the health food and vitamin shop Second Nature — almost 52 years in East Hampton — but on Sunday the shop closed its doors here for good. It wasn't the high price of rent but rather the lack of foot traffic that drove the decision, an owner said. “Southampton is livelier.”

A plan to alleviate chronic flooding and improve safety by constructing a traffic circle at the five-way intersection between Fort Pond and Fort Pond Bay in Montauk was hashed out at Tuesday’s meeting of the East Hampton Town Board.

The East Hampton Town Trustees codified new policies on docks and other floating structures in waters under their jurisdiction, including a prohibition on construction of any new residential piers or fixed or floating docks in the entirety of Three Mile Harbor.

The East Hampton Village Zoning Board of Appeals granted both a special permit and variances, with conditions, to the Jewish Center of the Hamptons to construct a pavilion for outdoor services and to install security planters along their front property line.

The East Hampton Village Zoning Board of Appeals was busy making up for lost time at its December meeting Friday, its November session having been canceled. Its first discussion peripherally involved a property on West End Road owned by Harry Macklowe.

The East Hampton Village Board spent last Thursday’s work session making small adjustments to sections of the village code, most involving beach regulations, and some pertaining to the code of ethics involving East Hampton Village ambulance volunteers. Rounding out the discussion was a measure allowing “dead spaces” over garages or pool houses to be insulated.

Visiting hours for John Benedict, 72, of Springs will be held at the Yardley and Pino Funeral Home in East Hampton on Saturday from 4:30 to 7 p.m., with a short service to be held at 6:30. Mr. Benedict died on Dec. 5.

Mariah Miltier has been promoted to executive director of the Montauk Chamber of Commerce, promising “new, exciting directions while holding our traditions close.”

A paved, multiuse recreation path has been completed at Boys and Girls Harbor Park, on the west side of Three Mile Harbor in East Hampton. It will accommodate users of all ages and abilities, including children learning to ride bicycles.

East Hampton Town’s senior purchasing agent recommended to the town board on Tuesday that the town become a Green Purchasing Community, a New York State program that confers buying guidance through state-approved specifications.

When East Hampton Town Supervisor-elect Kathee Burke-Gonzalez is sworn in next month, one of the first changes that will be seen at Town Hall is a resumption of the town board’s Thursday evening meetings.