Letters

There has been enough discussion on the proposal to construct sidewalks on County Road 39, a project to take two years [“Sidewalk Construction Will Mean Regular Lane Closures for Two Years on County Road 39,” 27east.com, March 8]. Almost all who have weighed in on this idea have been opposed to it. I, too, am opposed to it.

I would like to suggest an alternative: Use the funds to raise the height of the Dune Road pavement by at least 1 foot, from Shinnecock Inlet westward to the Quogue Village eastern border.

Hampton Bays celebrated 100 years of its current name last fall. After the celebration, we participants had to drive home from Dune Road. The road was under 6 inches of water. Most everyone went east toward Ponquogue Bridge. We went west, where there was less traffic.

We drove for quite a while at a very slow speed. The sound of the tires sloshing in the water was annoying. When the sloshing suddenly stopped, we looked outside to see a welcome sign to the Village of Quogue. Quogue had built their roadway higher. It was dry.

I asked someone, what about this business of getting flooded? The answer was that this was a rare occasion when the moon was full and northeast winds filled the bay, spilling water over onto Dune Road. The moon was, indeed, full that night, but there was no wind. The fireworks show that night would not have been possible had there been high winds.

In fact, spring tides, or extra-high tides, occur twice a month, once during the full moon and again during the new moon phase. These last three days each, totaling six days per month, or something better than 20 percent of the time — 20 percent occurrence is not a fluke. It’s something conscientious people take into account when they are spending precious tax money.

Let’s get Suffolk County to spend that sidewalk money to make Dune Road east of Quogue as dry as Quogue’s portion. Absolutely nobody wants an additional two-year traffic snafu on County Road 39. Dune Road will get much more use than the proposed sidewalks.

But Dune Road is not listed as a Suffolk County road. Ponquogue Bridge (County Road 32) is.

We have A-list legislators representing us in both the county and town governments. Here’s a chance for them to turn over town-controlled Dune Road to Suffolk County. Then it can be paved as high as necessary — a better use of the sidewalk funds.

Bruce C. Doscher

Hampton Bays