Westhampton Beach hires special counsel to examine religious boundary

Recommend

Comment

Email this article

Print this article

Get news alerts

RSS Feeds

Share Digg Mixx Linked In Facebook Twitter Delicious

A lawyer with a Garden City-based firm has been hired by the Village of Westhampton Beach to analyze constitutional issues relating to a religious boundary for Orthodox Jews that has been proposed by the Hampton Synagogue.

Although the village has not been served with legal papers, the decision by board members to hire outside counsel could be interpreted as a sign that they are preparing for an upcoming legal battle over the eruv, an invisible religious boundary inside which Orthodox Jews would be able to push and carry objects on the Sabbath. Marc Schneier, the founding rabbi of the Hampton Synagogue, has not ruled out filing a lawsuit if the application is denied once it is refiled this fall.

Maureen Liccione, an attorney at Jaspan Schlesinger Hoffman LLP, will examine constitutional issues pertaining to the proposed religious boundary. The boundary would cover about one square mile in the village and be demarcated by black plastic pipes affixed to preexisting telephone poles.

Village Board members hired Ms. Liccione, at a rate of $200 an hour, in a 3-1 vote during last Thursday night’s board meeting. Mayor Conrad Teller and Trustees Toni-Jo Birk and Hank Tucker approved the hiring while Deputy Mayor Jim Kametler cast the dissenting vote. Trustee Joan Levan was not present at the meeting.

“I don’t think she’s a good attorney,” Mr. Kametler said after the meeting. “The eruv is a massive issue, and it has to be looked at in every direction.

“She is not the right person for the eruv,” he continued.

Though she declined to comment on Mr. Kametler’s comments, Ms. Liccione said on Tuesday that she would be examining the constitutional issues regarding the establishment of an eruv in the village. She said she could not offer additional information at this time.

Although they asked the village for a proclamation for the boundary in February, synagogue officials temporarily withdrew their application in late May because of controversy and misinformation surrounding the issue. Instead, the synagogue organized an educational campaign on the eruv and held a community-wide informational meeting in Westhampton Beach on August 13.

The members of the Village Board have been reserved in stating their opinions on the application. However, Mr. Teller has stated that he wants to seek legal counsel to examine possible issues pertaining to the eruv, such as whether or not the village is legally obligated to approve the creation of the religious boundary.

“She’s just looking at the ‘what ifs’ involving the situation,” the mayor said, adding that Ms. Liccione will examine all possible outcomes.

Village Attorney Bo Bishop expects to receive a legal memorandum from Ms. Liccione within the next 30 days. Mr. Bishop has already submitted his opinion on the issue to Mr. Teller. The document will not be public due to the client-attorney privilege, according to Mr. Bishop.

Westhampton Beach Village Clerk Kathy McGinnis said that another organization, the Alliance for the Separation of Church and State in the Greater Westhampton Area, Inc., led by retired attorney Mark Williams, will also be submitting a legal opinion to the village on the matter. Ms. McGinnis said Mr. Williams elected to submit the opinion on his own volition.

A new organization, called Jewish People Opposed to the Eruv, held its inaugural meeting on Sunday morning in Westhampton Beach that was attended by more than 200 people. At the meeting, it was disclosed that the Alliance for the Separation of Church and State for the Greater Westhampton Area has hired Marci A. Hamilton, who holds the Paul R. Verkuil Chair in Public Law at the Cardozo Law School in New York City, to take a closer look at the synagogue’s application.

“She will be looking at the constitutional issues the alliance sees in the eruv application,” said Mark Williams, a retired attorney involved with the organization. He said he could not offer further details on the issues that Ms. Hamilton will be exploring.

Also at last Thursday night’s meeting, the trustees appointed Mr. Bishop as special counsel in a lawsuit filed by Barry Bernstein, a Manhattan-based developer who is building Westhampton Commons, a proposed 3,500-square-foot commercial building. The lawsuit involves a cross-access parking agreement between Mr. Bernstein and the planned new building for the Westhampton Free Library.

When constructed, Westhampton Commons will house a clothing shop and restaurant. The building will be located on the southwest corner of Library Avenue and Main Street in Westhampton Beach.

Mr. Bernstein has said in the past that he expects the project to be completed in April 2009.

In other news, local musician Nick Guldi alerted the board about an incident that took place about two weeks ago, when Village Police asked him to stop playing his cello on Main Street because he lacked a permit. On Monday, Mr. Teller said Mr. Guldi would be allowed to play the cello on Main Street without a music permit.