Last week, the Sag Harbor School District announced that it would move forward with plans to purchase five parcels on Marsden Street on its own, without the financial support —... more
State lawmakers and Governor Kathy Hochul delivered for residents of the South Fork and Stony Brook University in the state budget formulated last week. As part of the massive spending plan, the governor agreed to a measure that would allow the state and the Town of Southampton to partner in an effort to restore the historic windmill at Stony Brook’s Southampton campus. Additionally, Hochul’s plan to create up to 15,000 affordable housing units on state-owned land across the state — including at the Southampton campus — was included in the budget. Both measures mark a significant dedication by state and ...
24 Apr 2024 by Editorial Board
The 2025 New York State budget approved on Saturday includes elements of the Local Journalism Sustainability Act, providing a payroll tax credit for local news outlets — a lifeline for a vital but struggling industry that benefits every state resident. Over the past quarter century, traditional revenue sources for community newspapers have been greatly diminished as international conglomerates have largely gobbled up the advertising business and moved it online. Largely as a result of this shift, between 2004 and 2023, 2,627 weekly publications closed or merged with other papers between 2004 and 2023. Some papers that survived have become husks ...
by Editorial Board
On May 14, the Sag Harbor Village Board will begin an important and long-overdue conversation with its residents about a subject that affects everyone, resident and visitor alike: parking in the village. It’s an essential conversation that requires some structure before it begins in order to be fruitful, and not just a cacophony of complaints. A workshop preceding the official hearings will be held at 6 p.m. on May 1, live and on Zoom. Here are a few statements that should be considered for discussion. These are not meant to be statements of absolute truth — they are ideas that ...
17 Apr 2024 by Editorial Board
The bumper stickers used to be ubiquitous on the roads: “No Farms No Food.” The slogan is a registered trademark of the American Farmland Trust, which mails out those bumper stickers for free to anyone in the United States who requests one. It’s a simple, accurate message, but it’s one that is lost on many people who think food comes from the grocery store or Amazon Fresh and forget that these retailers are merely intermediaries. On the South Fork, one doesn’t need to drive far in any direction to come across farmland. It is one of the pleasures of living ...
by Editorial Board
It’s the title of Tarō Gomi’s beloved children’s book, which has, for nearly 50 years, been delivering a simple but universal reminder: “Since we all eat, we all must poop. All of us! Everyone!” It doesn’t seem like fodder for this space — but, increasingly, more and more people behave as though (how shall we put this?) their own poop is perfumed in a unique way. We are all trapped together on an island that, though long, is densely populated in places, and increasingly so. As a result, we are slowly befouling this place we call home, polluting groundwater with ...
by Editorial Board
1994. It’s hard to imagine, but despite being a matriarchal society, that was the first year Shinnecock Nation women were permitted to vote on tribal matters. And it wasn’t until 2013 that the nation had its first female on the Council of Trustees. So it was great to witness the momentous milestone on April 2, when Lisa Goree was elected the new chair of the Shinnecock Nation Council of Trustees. She joins Bianca Collins, who continues serving as trustee, and Linda Franklin, who, as sunksqua, has an important nonvoting advisory role. It’s encouraging to see the nation vote Goree into ...
by Editorial Board
Montauk was closest to mind at last week’s Express Sessions event focusing on beach nourishment: The results of a recent federal effort to bolster the sandy beaches and protect the hamlet’s business district were visible through the windows of oceanfront Gurney’s, which is safely up on the bluff. But the content of the discussion was of great importance to the entire South Fork: Beach nourishment is either part of the past, present or future for the length of the oceanfront, and even parts of the bay side. Beach nourishment is expensive, but it’s also largely effective both as a way ...
9 Apr 2024 by Editorial Board
Monday’s eclipse was stunning, but it also reminded us how perfectly in sync the universe can be: The local peak of the event could be predicted to the minute, and the moon arrived right on time. The New York State budget, on the other hand … It was due April 1, but the wrangling continues in Albany — and even the eclipse itself contributed to the delay, since no session was held on Monday to allow State Senate and Assembly members the chance to see the show in the sky. They quickly got back to work on Tuesday. In the ...
8 Apr 2024 by Editorial Board
There are 14 school districts spread along the 40-mile stretch from Montauk to Westhampton Beach. There may have been a time when enrollment data, and the finances of operating a school district, made that number inconsequential, or at least appropriate. But that time assuredly has passed — and with each budget season it becomes more and more apparent how absurd and irresponsible it is to have this many school districts in such a small geographic area. It’s a waste of money, and it’s a recipe for chaos. Most East End school districts are forecasting a decline in student enrollment over ...
3 Apr 2024 by Editorial Board
Thomas Falcone announced last week that he would be leaving his post as chief executive officer of the Long Island Power Authority in May. It was “unexpected,” said State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., who has been working hard in Albany to move LIPA away from its current model to a true public utility. Falcone’s departure is a curveball that “brings into question the future direction of LIPA,” Thiele has said. But a few days before his announcement clouded the larger picture, Falcone provided a much clearer view of the near- and long-term future of electricity on Long Island, and ...
27 Mar 2024 by Editorial Board
