In recent weeks, The Southampton Press, in articles, editorials and on the 27Speaks podcast, has hammered away on the importance of transparency in government and how the Southampton Village Board... more
Related Editorials
The Final Step
As Southampton Town considers aggressive action on sand mines, with plans to use amortization — a tool last used effectively to rid the town of nightclubs and bars the town considered nuisances — to finally end the practice, it’s important...
Keep Talking
Talk is not a solution, but solutions won’t be found without a great deal of interplay between the officials making the decisions and the public that will be affected by them. So The Express Sessions event last week in Sag...
Great Buys
It’s not every day that an opportunity comes along to buy a castle. But that’s exactly where Southampton Town officials found themselves this week. Using $4 million in proceeds from the Community Preservation Fund, the Town Board agreed to buy...
Once and for All
There’s an irony that Southampton Town officials might have the least power when it comes to the travel plaza featuring tax-free gasoline that is going up on Shinnecock Nation property in Hampton Bays — but also might be most at...
A Do-Over
Stop digging. That’s the best advice we can offer the Southampton History Museum. When you’re in a hole, recognize it and, if you do nothing else, don’t make it deeper. And there’s a hole, and it’s deep, and it’s time...
Giving Thanks
We are thankful for the ocean, so near to us here on the South Fork, and the serenity of nature surrounding us. Every year, people make the voyage to the East End, often from more urban dwellings, precisely because even...
On the Front Lines
Starting a new job is always stressful. But Leydy Renteria-Merced might deserve a spa day after accepting the role of executive director of Centro Corazón de Maria, a Hampton Bays-based immigrant advocacy group. Timing is everything, and Renteria-Merced arrives just...
Making Ends Meet
Budgeting is the most important task town officials have, and the brand new $134 million budget for 2025 will face a great deal of scrutiny. Taxpayers will note not only that it will pierce the state’s cap on tax levy...
Turning Point
The Southampton Arts Center was filled with incredible talent, energy and generosity last Thursday — both on stage and in the audience, it was an all-star lineup of the men and (mostly) women who run the region’s nonprofit organizations. Having...
Stuck in Gridlock
It’s refreshing: Bill Hillman doesn’t mince words. And Suffolk County’s top engineer, who officially retired last week, will be missed, if only for his candor. Speaking recently at a presentation on traffic challenges on the South Fork, the start of...