Mecox Bay Sailing Club Proposal May Come To A Vote Next Month

A contentious plan to revive a children’s sailing club on town-owned land in Water Mill may be nearing the finish line, one of the project’s proponents said this week.

Jeff Mansfield, the Bridgehampton resident behind the plan, said at a Bridgehampton Citizens Advisory Committee meeting on Monday evening that the town’s Conservation Board was expected to issue his nonprofit group, the Mecox Sailing Association Inc., a wetlands permit on Wednesday, August 24. The Town Board is also tentatively scheduled to discuss the measure at a work session on September 9.

“It looks like things could happen sooner rather than later,” Mr. Mansfield told the CAC.

Mr. Mansfield and his group are proposing to bring back to life a club that existed decades ago that taught children how to sail small Sunfish boats. The plan has drawn opposition from a group of residents who have mobilized to speak out at several public hearings against Mr. Mansfield’s proposal.

Mr. Mansfield believes that the Town Board may vote on whether to enter into a license agreement with the nonprofit group at its September 13 meeting. But Town Spokeswoman Jennifer Garvey said on Tuesday that that’s unlikely.

“I have no idea when it would be up for a vote,” Ms. Garvey said. “I can’t imagine it would be on the 13th.”

If the Conservation Board grants the wetlands permit to the group, then the Town Board will most likely be holding a work session on September 9, Ms. Garvey said, where neighboring residents who have opposed the plan will be invited to attend and hammer out the terms of a potential license agreement.

The Conservation Board was poised to issue the group a wetlands permit at its meeting on August 10 but adjourned the decision to allow time for a town attorney to review the language of the resolution.

Members of the CAC reiterated their endorsement of Mr. Mansfield’s plans. “You’ve done a yeoman’s job in trying to serve the kids,” said CAC member Steve Steinberg.

Children’s 
Museum Pitches Walking Trails

Officials at the Children’s Museum of the East End are looking to create two small walking trails around the museum’s property, located on the Bridgehampton-Sag Harbor Turnpike.

One trail will be 700 feet in length, the other 1,500 feet. The trails would be lined with interpretive markers to educate walkers about important environmental aspects, he said.

Stephen Long, executive director of the museum, pitched the plan to the CAC on Monday night to get the community’s input. Members of the CAC were supportive.

The trails are aimed at encouraging young children who use the museum to develop a 
relationship with nature and the environment. “This is very much in the idea phase,” Mr. Long said.

Several plans are on the table, including creating a wheelchair accessible trail, said Mr. Long, who also noted that there is only one wheelchair accessible trail in Southampton, and none in East Hampton.

The museum needs the town’s permission to proceed because there is a conservation easement on the property, Mr. Long said.