Letters

We are very fortunate in Southampton Village to have many private organizations that support our community. It is unfortunate, then, that the village sometimes lags behind them, failing both the organizations and residents when it comes to partnering with them.

I learned recently that in June 2024, our mayor signed a largely unknown agreement allowing one of these outside group to manage bioswales and buffers on village-owned property. While most such agreements would affirmatively require the outside party to submit all plans to the village for review — a simple step that protects the public and is practically boilerplate in such arrangements — this one reversed the obligation, requiring the village to make the request.

Worse still, it does not appear that the village has exercised this right of review, nor have I yet been able to find in any public record a set of plans for any of the work done or contemplated under the agreement.

One of the projects contemplated under that agreement is a planting plan for the village-owned right-of-way between Gin Lane and Lake Agawam. This property lies in the historic district. Under Chapter 65 of our code, the contemplated work therefore requires a certificate of appropriateness from the Board of Architectural Review and Historic Preservation.

I have been informed by the mayor that planting of this property will start imminently, despite the absence of any application for (or granting of) a certificate of appropriateness. I also was informed that the project did receive a wetlands permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals, but I have yet to see it.

Unfortunately, this is a pattern. The wonderful and generous renovation of the Southampton Arts Center arboretum was similarly slated to be green-lighted by the mayor this summer without a certificate of appropriateness — an omission that was thankfully rectified once it was brought to his attention. How, then, can we be repeating the same mistake only a few short months later?

And there is a more pertinent example. A planting plan was proposed for the same Gin Lane location in 2019 by a group of residents and largely kept from public view. Thank goodness we had a mayor and village attorney at the time who expressed concerns. The plan was presented to the Village Board, which denied it in a 0-5 vote.

Worryingly, the mayor has told me that the individual leading the charge on behalf of the current project was the same as the leader of the 2019 initiative. Has that 2019 plan simply resurfaced under a friendlier and less vigilant administration?

I have asked the mayor to pause the current project to allow BARHP review, or to explain to residents why he believes it is not necessary.

Rob Coburn

Trustee

Southampton Village