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Southampton Adopts Hampton Bays Rezoning That Kills Cannabis Biz

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More than two dozen properties along Montauk Highway leading into downtown Hampton Bays were officially rezoned from

More than two dozen properties along Montauk Highway leading into downtown Hampton Bays were officially rezoned from "highway business" to "hamlet commercial" by the Southampton Town Board on Tuesday, including a long vacant former bank building, on the right in this photo, that is the subject of an application to the town for a cannabis dispensary. The rezoning will block the town Planning Board from approving the pot shop application because such businesses are allowed only in highway business zones. MICHAEL WRIGHT

Joe Lustberg has been renting the former North Fork Bank building in Hampton Bays for nearly a year, as part of a plan to open it as a cannabis dispensary. He accused the Southampton Town Board of changing the zoning on some two dozen properties surrounding his specifically to prevent him and his partners from opening their business. MICHAEL WRIGHT

Joe Lustberg has been renting the former North Fork Bank building in Hampton Bays for nearly a year, as part of a plan to open it as a cannabis dispensary. He accused the Southampton Town Board of changing the zoning on some two dozen properties surrounding his specifically to prevent him and his partners from opening their business. MICHAEL WRIGHT

authorMichael Wright on Jul 9, 2025
The Southampton Town Board unanimously approved a sweeping rezoning of a swath of Montauk Highway on the edge of downtown Hampton Bays on Tuesday. The move came barely a month... more

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