Southampton Town Sees Concern in Communications During Wildfire Emergency
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Over 90 fire departments and emergency services agencies battle a wildfire on Saturday in Westhampton Beach. COURTESY WESTHAMPTON BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT
Over 90 fire departments and emergency services agencies battle a wildfire on Saturday in Westhampton Beach. COURTESY WESTHAMPTON BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT
Michael Wright on Mar 14, 2025
As with every emergency, Saturday’s wildfire in Westhampton proved to be a learning experience for Southampton Town’s leaders and emergency managers. Some officials say it has shed light on some... more
WESTHAMPTON BEACH — Marcelino Perez-Tax, 56, of Westhampton Beach was arrested on June 29 at 8:36 p.m. and charged with misdemeanor DWI. Village Police said Perez-Tax had a blood alcohol level of .08. He was pulled over after being observed driving on the shoulder and failing to stay in his lane, police reported. His vehicle was seized by police because he had a previous DWI conviction in Southampton Town in November of 2013. SOUTHAMPTON VILLAGE — Village Police received a report of a stolen vehicle from outside a Main Street business at 11 a.m. on June 25. A responding officer ...
2 Jul 2025 by Staff Writer
Suffolk County Sherriff Erron Toulon and County Executive Ed Romaine warned drivers this week that the county will be rolling out a new anti-DWI campaign that will feature stepped-up enforcement of drinking and driving laws and public outreach to discourage drunk driving. The sheriff’s office said that the county will step up patrols focusing on DWI enforcement and on-road sobriety checkpoints throughout the county, starting this coming weekend and continuing throughout the summer. Toulon said his office’s STOP DWI unit is on pace to break a record number of DWI arrests this year and encouraged young adults to turn to ...
by Staff Writer
Southampton Town has proposed rezoning a portion of Montauk Highway leading into the Hampton Bays business district — a planning realignment that was recommended long ago and brought forward now in what appears to be an attempt to derail plans for a cannabis dispensary in an abandoned bank building, which has faced public opposition. The Town Board held a public hearing last week on the proposal to rezone about 26 properties along Montauk Highway to the east of the Hampton Bays hamlet center from “highway business” to “hamlet commercial.” The change would mean smaller-scale development, more green space between structures ...
by Michael Wright
In the wake of Dr. Jaime Bottcher’s recent departure from the Southampton Union Free School District, High School Principal Dr. Brian Zahn has stepped into her role as the new assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction. But it didn’t come without a fiery back-and-forth between Superintendent of Schools Dr. Fatima Morrell and School Board newcomer Rodney “Chip” Pierson, who raised concerns over the new administrator’s $223,000 salary during a Board of Education meeting on Tuesday night. He noted that Bottcher earned $202,000 in the same role. “Now we’re putting a new person in at this position — how do we ...
by Michelle Trauring