Letters

Make History

On Thursday, October 17, the residents of East Quogue have a unique and fleeting chance to make history. The hamlet of East Quogue has the unique opportunity to become the eighth incorporated village in the Town of Southampton, and the 55th successful village in the State of New York, while there are forces working to remove the opportunity to exercise home rule.

We have a chance to get a seat at the table and to be the decision-makers in our future. We can protect our schools, our business district, our community character and our taxes. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to protect our community and to put a stop on overdevelopment and a significant increase in density in our community.

And, guess what? You — you — have time to decide all of the particulars. We have up to two years to make any changes. The only rush is about the decision to incorporate on October 17. If we do incorporate, you have time to decide about what happens.

If you have questions or need information to make your decision at the voting booth today, please reach out to us at info@eqvillageexploratorycommittee.com.

On behalf of the members of the East Quogue Village Exploratory Committee, I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has helped us in our research, supported our efforts with donations, and volunteered their time to gather signatures or reach out to the community.

Exploring village incorporation has been a monumental undertaking these last two years, and we could not have done this without your support and the support of our friends and families. I know that I speak for many members of this committee when I say that we had no idea how challenging it would be or how long it would take. We also had no idea how rewarding it would be to get to know our fellow community members, learn how government works, what it takes to become a village, and make new friends along the way. Those of you who attended meetings, connected with us on Facebook or on our website, we appreciate your efforts to get informed and ask us about our research.

If you want to protect East Quogue, vote yes for incorporation on Thursday, October 17. Please exercise your right to vote at the East Quogue Elementary School from noon to 9 p.m.

Karen Kooi

East Quogue Village Exploratory Committee