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A Tribute to Sag Harbor's 'Morning Program'

The words "morning program" might appear dull but are warmly nostalgic for anyone who has sent their children through Sag Harbor Elementary in the last 30 years.

NEIGHBORS: The Teambuilder

Jeff Aubry talks to EAST about his pro hoops career, the Next Gen Basketball Players Union, and life in Sag Harbor.

OVERHEARD: The Wild Girls of Lily Pond Lane

For more than 30 summers in East Hampton, starting in 1936, girls from 3 or 4 all the way to 18 could be found in a studio property on Lily Pond Lane — out on the grass, capering, leaping, skipping, and reaching for the halcyon skies — as they learned the art of dance in a lineage that descended directly from Isadora Duncan, the legendary choreographer and pioneer of contemporary dance. This was Anita Zahn’s Summer School of the Arts, which lives on in spirit today in the Rainbowdance program in Boston, established by Dicki Johnson Macy, a former student of Zahn.

OUT HERE: Greatest of Ease

Trapeze lessons at the Hayground School in Bridgehampton have become something of a tradition (dating, if you want to go all the way back, to the 1970s when small students at Hayground’s hippie-dippie precursor, the Hampton Day School, flew through the air in phys-ed class). This year, the trapeze season wraps up in mid-September.

Red Devil Swim Is Saturday

Red Devil Swims of one-quarter, one-half, or one-mile distances start from Amagansett’s Atlantic Avenue Beach on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. East Hampton Ocean Rescue is the beneficiary.

County Steps Up Efforts to Collect Hotel Tax on Airbnbs

Over the summer, many homeowners who rent their properties on a short-term basis received letters from the Suffolk County comptroller alerting them that they may be in violation of the Suffolk County Hotel and Motel Occupancy Tax. While there is nothing new about the county trying to collect the tax, the holes in its net have gotten smaller and perhaps it’s caught a few more fish, in part because of a new partner, Granicus, a software company that scours rental registries and about 70 websites in search of property owners who might be ignoring the tax.

Developer Reveals Plans for Downtown Sag Harbor Hub

Adam Potter’s new plans for a mixed-use development in the heart of Sag Harbor Village — calling for a 299-seat theater, the exact size of the current Bay Street Theater, in a 16,144-square-foot building he’s calling the Complex — have finally been submitted to the village board.

New Marker in Montauk Honors Amistad Crew

With thoughtful words, inspired movement and music, and enthusiastic applause on Saturday, the Montauk Historical Society, Eastville Community Historical Society, and Southampton African American Museum gathered leaders and community members at Culloden Point Beach to pay tribute to the crew of La Amistad, a group of illegally enslaved Africans who came ashore in Montauk in 1839 following a mutiny aboard the schooner, seeking fresh water, food, and a way back home.

On the Wing: Epic Summer for Rare Birds at Mecox

Just over the lip of the dune bordering the lot at Scott Cameron Beach is one of the most important habitat areas for shorebirds on the entire East End: Mecox Inlet.

In the Trade Parade: 'Money Drives Everybody Out, and Everybody In’

On any given morning, vehicles bump forward slowly through trade-parade traffic on Montauk Highway, at least half of them service trucks and vans. This is how the army of tradespeople who uphold the facade of the Hamptons arrives to build and service huge houses and maintain pristine pools and landscaping.

Herrick Park: Common Ground or Battleground?

Little by little, East Hampton Village's Herrick Park is changing. For some, the changes are a welcome evolution. But not everyone is thrilled with the way things are proceeding, and questions have been raised about the larger plan for the park and the connected Douglas E. Dayton Arboretum.

Trustees Say Recreational Boating Is Dropping

Statistics and observation indicate fewer recreational boats in East Hampton Town waters in 2023 than in the four previous years, a trend that may track that of the Covid-19 pandemic.

On the Police Logs 08.31.23

Officers were summoned on Aug. 23 at 4:34 a.m. to the Montauk 7-Eleven, where a man was seen and heard “screaming at a clerk” about sandwich prices. The man, who turned out to be homeless, was told to calm down.

New Classes, Clubs Planned as Schools Here Ready for New Year

School districts across the South Fork will welcome students back to their hallways and classrooms next week, in many cases with new classes and clubs on offer, recently hired teachers to meet and greet, sparkling facilities to explore, and new chances every day to make it a great academic year.

Kids Culture for August 31, 2023

There’re still a few days left to wrap up those summer reading lists, grab your school supplies, and pick out those first-day outfits before the start of classes next week. Other activities for kids and teens include art projects, book clubs, science presentations, movies, and more.

Item of the Week: The L.V.I.S. Beach Plum Fabric

In 1977, the Ladies Village Improvement Society commissioned this beach plum print found in its collection, and it has remained a signature pattern for the organization. The revenue from the use and sale of it has been a source of funding for the L.V.I.S. since then.

Allegedly Seen Wearing a Stolen Hat

Late Saturday afternoon, not long after the manager of the Balenciaga retail store on Newtown Lane called East Hampton Village police to report a shoplifting, a man fitting the manager’s description of the thief was spotted strolling down the street wearing the missing merchandise.

Mary Hildreth, 94

Mary Roberta Lewis Hildreth, who helped her husband, Merrall Topping Hildreth, run the Sagaponack General Store and Post Office for many years, died on July 26 at East End Hospice’s Kanas Center for Hospice Care in Quiogue.

New Town Housing to Be Christened ‘Cantwell Court’

The East Hampton Town Planning Board met last week to finalize the subdivision plans for 395 Pantigo Road, the town’s 16-lot affordable housing project. The houses will line a cul-de-sac with a working name of Cantwell Court, after Larry Cantwell, who retired as East Hampton Town Supervisor in 2017 after a long career serving both the village and the town.

Town Trustees Meeting Friday

Closed session to get legal advice on dock matters.