Letters

On June 14, the Sag Harbor Village Board of Trustees will vote on a proposal for a passenger ferry by Peconic Jitney (owned by the Hampton Jitney) between Sag Harbor and Greenport, scheduled to arrive and depart up to seven times daily at Long Wharf during summer and fall. The proposal calls for a five-year commitment from the village.

We can see potential benefits to such a service: pleasant outings on the water for residents, more business for our shops and restaurants, an easier commute for workers between the North and South forks.

But big questions about the ferry remain, as detailed by Stephen Kotz in The Express’s May 26 issue [“Peconic Jitney Ferry Faces Questions In Greenport, Too,” 27east.com, May 25].

Save Sag Harbor believes it would be most prudent to postpone any approvals until we have a clearer picture of the following:

Hundreds of passengers arriving and leaving Long Wharf (35,000 predicted by the fifth season) could generate even more traffic at what is now our busiest intersection and add even more pressure to the strained parking capacity of Main Street and Long Wharf. Will Ubers and Lyfts ease, or worsen, these problems? We don’t know.

Long Wharf was renovated at great cost only recently, with the intent to encourage strolling, fishing and enjoyment of the waterfront. Will successive arrivals and departures of a commercial ferry on Long Wharf disrupt these popular uses? We don’t know.

We do know that Greenport trustees have expressed concerns about the ferry in their own renovated and busy harbor and have not yet approved a landing site. We know that the SEQRA review of this proposal provided to the Village Board relied entirely on the Jitney’s own data from a trial 10 years ago, when Sag Harbor and its streets were notably less crowded than today.

If the Village Board does choose to approve the Peconic Jitney service, we ask that they do the following:

1. Limit approval to one year (as the village did in testing its paid parking app last year), so that if downsides exceed upsides, we won’t have to live with them longer.

2. Commission an independent third-party study of effects on traffic, parking, Main Street business and leisure uses of the wharf.

3. Explore alternate docking sites, including Marine Park and transient docks.

We urge village residents and interested others to attend the meeting on Tuesday, June 14, or write and ask Sag Harbor’s Village Board of Trustees to vote judiciously on this proposal.

Hilary Loomis

Board of Directors

Save Sag Harbor

The letter also was signed by Save Sag Harbor board members Bob Weinstein, Barbara Roberts, Tom Clavin, Randolph Croxton, Myrna Davis, Sara Gage, Elizabeth Gilbert, Peter Ginna, Cathleen McGuigan, Steven Reiner and Dan Weiss — Ed.