Villages

Southampton’s first celebration of Juneteenth on Friday, a traditional but still unofficial national holiday marking the day the last enslaved black Americans were freed in Texas in 1865, was upbeat yet serious, with songs and speeches, rituals and praise.

After a period in which no new Covid-19 cases were seen in East Hampton Town, county figures released on Friday showed an uptick of seven.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Thursday that he will sign an executive order allowing the State Liquor Authority to immediately suspend liquor licenses for bars or restaurants found to be violating the state's Covid-19 rules and regulations. A related executive order will make bars responsible for the sidewalk or "outside area immediately in front of their premises."

After getting permission for outdoor dining from state and local officials, East End restaurants are finding creative ways to make room for as many customers as possible this summer.

Southampton Town reopened its playgrounds and skate parks on Thursday after months of closures due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The reopening was made possible after an adjustment to the state's phase two guidelines.

The town will follow the Center for Disease Control's safety protocols and visitors must wear face coverings and adhere to the six-feet social distance requirements.  

When Long Island enters phase three of reopening, which is expected on Wednesday, East End spas will be back in business, and they’re prepared to offer treatments ranging from massages to colonics with new protocols designed to give clients peace of mind. 

Despite seven deaths from Covid-19 over the 24-hour period ending June 13, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said on Monday that other metrics continue trending in the right direction as Long Island moves toward the third of a four-phase resumption of activity.

It was the first time since March 16 that no one in the county had died of the virus. Hospitalizations were also down, and given positive trends, the county executive said he has been lobbying the state to allow cultural institutions to open sooner.

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Ina Garten was already looking out for the welfare of her two million-plus Instagram followers. “Hunkering down at home with Jeffrey and a few overnight Belgian waffles for dinner,” she wrote under a photo of a fluffy, syrup-soaked waffle topped with bananas.

The First Baptist Church of Bridgehampton has seen a huge jump in worshippers as the Rev. Tisha Williams embraces the virtual space with online services on YouTube and Zoom Bible study.

Last week saw multiple demonstrations on the East End in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, huge crowds coming together to decry the murder of African-Americans at the hands of whites, many, but not all of them, police officers.

East Hampton Town is considering a plan to temporarily change traffic circulation on several streets in Montauk's downtown and close a segment of Main Street to vehicles one day a week in an effort to create more open space for pedestrians and cyclists and to encourage social distancing.

New sectors of economy reopened Wednesday as Covid-19 impacts continue to subside. In-store retail, salons, professional offices, and car dealerships are among the businesses that are now cleared to operate.

A new drive-up and walk-up Covid-19 testing site will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with the first two hours reserved for members of the Montauk Chamber of Commerce.

Un nuevo centro de testeo para Covid-19, accesible a peatones y autos (drive-thru), abrirá el martes que viene en la escuela de Montauk (Montauk School), según un comunicado de la Cámara de Comercio de Montauk (Montauk Chamber of Commerce).

Suffolk County Sheriff Errol D. Toulon Jr. on Monday announced he intends to create a community advisory board to give residents a direct line of communication and representation to his department. Members will discuss relevant topics with the sheriff and provide input on initiatives and policies.

Sunday's event, which drew thousands, came as protesters were continuing to gather across the East End, the country, and the world to protest racist policing.

With the ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos serving as referee and announcer, the live-streamed match at the South Fork Country Club in Amagansett brought in more than twice what the pantries' fund-raisers normally reap in a year.

The mood was fiery and rebellious but also upbeat and confident on Friday as a huge crowd convened in Sag Harbor to protest police killings of African-Americans and decry the ingrained and structural racism that perpetuates injustice and denies equal opportunity to all Americans.

The Hampton Classic Horse Show would have marked its 45th anniversary this summer, but on Friday the show's organizers announced its cancellation because of safety precautions amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Live, in-person graduation ceremonies and professional baseball with fans in seats may happen this summer, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said on Friday, as Covid-19 infections, hospitalizations, and deaths continue to trend downward in the county.

El fin de semana largo, del Día de los Caídos, marcó la reapertura del mercado de Sag Harbor, mientras que el mercado de Springs se inauguró el sábado pasado, y el de Montauk reabrirá el jueves que viene.

The county had just one death from Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, but the news is less positive on the fiscal front as it anticipates a $590 million deficit this year alone.

A postcard shows a group of men lining up at Camp Upton in Yaphank to receive their new uniforms and start training as soldiers during World War I.

Gail Baranello's Moving Through dance therapy class on isolation is being taught online during the shutdown.

Shopkeepers in the village are hoping to recapture lost customers with curbside pickup, but in the words of one, it's been "more of a trickle than a river."

East Hampton Village Mayor Richard Lawler will issue an executive order to allow restaurants and takeout food stores to set up temporary outdoor dining areas on public property starting next Wednesday in a move aimed at providing a much-needed boost to village restaurants and the commercial district in general. Sag Harbor is proposing a similar move.

“How often do we put masks on to deal with certain things in our life, and how often do we take them off and feel vulnerable?” said Charity Joy Robinson, who taught the dance last Thursday on the lawn at the North Sea Community House for a small, socially-distanced group of students.

Birdhouses, the work of Michael Cinque, the owner of Amagansett Wine and Spirits, have popped up in recent weeks. “Making sawdust is really what I do,” he said recently. “Occasionally, we get birdhouses out of them.”

At least 500 people, some say well over 1,000, shut down Main Street in Bridgehampton on Tuesday night during a peaceful march to remember George Floyd, the 46-year-old black Minneapolis resident who died after Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes on May 25.