From an 1898 labor shortage in a building boom, to the day 50 years later when a 40-foot gondola was trundled down Main Street, this was East Hampton.

Though county government can seem at a distance from the needs of the South Fork, we depend on it for a range of services, from environmental protection to keeping harbor inlets navigable.

Amid a fuss about whether or not a certain restaurant should be allowed to paint its facade the way it wants, one key idea may be overshadowed: the essential role the members of a community’s appointed boards play in maintaining a sense of place at a time of great development pressure.