Budget and Finance Committee Makes Recommendations for Better Handling of Legal Expenditures in Southampton Village

Len Zinnanti presented a series of recommendations, supported unanimously by his colleagues on the budget and finance committee, related to managing Southampton Village’s legal fees, at the Village Board’s meeting on March 2.

What the village spends each year on attorneys and legal counsel became a frequent topic of debate and discussion earlier this year, when it was revealed the board increased the village’s budget for legal expenses by $250,000 in January after blowing well past the original budgeted amount of $225,000 — by $138,685 — with four months left in the fiscal year.

Starting with the disclaimer that the recommendations were not personally directed at any single contracted lawyer that works for the village, Zinnanti outlined several recommendations made by the committee, which serves in an advisory capacity to the mayor and Village Board, chief among them designating one trustee to serve as a “legal liaison.”

The board member fulfilling that role would have oversight of legal engagements and fees across all boards and committees, while Village Administrator Charlene Kagel-Betts would still be primarily responsible for handling the day-to-day billing related to outside counsel.

Another noteworthy recommendation was to evaluate the feasibility of hiring in-house general counsel on a full-time basis. Andrew Preston of the Mineola-based firm Bee Ready Law, serves the village on a part-time basis currently.

Zinnanti added that the committee is urging the board to consider retention of outside counsel by issuing a request for proposals, in an attempt to be competitive and transparent, and to make the recommendations effective before the next election cycle.

The board had initial discussions about a proposal from the Suffolk County Water Authority to consider asking residents to comply with an odd-even lawn watering ordinance — matching the calendar dates with their street addresses — that would go into effect immediately upon board approval. The water authority is asking several municipalities to consider adopting such an ordinance to help avoid the water shortage emergency that happened during last summer’s drought.

Mayor Jesse Warren acknowledged it was likely to be something that would be unpopular with some residents, but said, “like it or not, ultimately, we have to do what’s best for the community.”

He also acknowledged that enforcement would be challenging. The board seemed to be in agreement that scheduling a public hearing to allow residents to share their thoughts and some ideas about the best way to proceed with an ordinance and how to enforce it would be a good idea.

One resident questioned whether or not the water authority would expect businesses to comply with an ordinance, or if it would only apply to residents. There was not an immediate answer to that question, but Trustee Bill Manger said it would be good to take into consideration.

On Tuesday, March 21, at 6 p.m., the board will hold a public hearing to go over results from the traffic study done by engineering firm Nelson Pope Voorhis and consider restricting right turns on Somerset Avenue, Bishops Lane and Corrigan Street on weekdays between the hours of 3 and 7 p.m. so that vehicles do not have the opportunity to use those roads as a shortcut from Hill Street back up to County Road 39.

The village also scheduled a public hearing for April 13 at 6 p.m. to go over the tentative budget for 2023-24.