Subdued Soft Opening With Bagels And Cream Cheese For Long Wharf

The new blacktop on Long Wharf was still so black that the hulking mass of Kisses, a 175-foot yacht moored along its east side, cast no shadow on a crystal clear Thursday morning, as workers with Summerhill Landscaping hustled to fill the planters arrayed at the end of Sag Harbor’s municipal pier.

The sirens of fire trucks filled the air, but the big trucks made the circle around the flag pole at the base of Main Street before heading back to the firehouse. They were there to herald the workers who spent portions of the past 10 months completing a $4.3 million wharf renovation project, but they dared not drive on to it for fear that a 15-ton pumper would gouge up the still-settling road surface, which had only been applied Tuesday morning.

Besides the paving work, the project included replacing steel sheathing, improving drainage, upgrading electricity, and making it more pedestrian-friendly, with walkways along either side and a deck at its end.

Village officials, led by Mayor Kathleen Mulcahy, followed the modest fire truck parade onto the wharf, where they served coffee and bagels and offered their thanks to the few remaining workers on the site.

One of them was Kevin Schrage, an East Moriches electrical contractor, who said, “The village has been great to work with.” Mr. Schrage said his team was waiting for a few more pieces of equipment to complete work on new electrical services that will allow the village to sell power to the mighty yachts that tie up at Long Wharf during much of the summer season rather than have them run their own on-board generators.

Jeff Grube, the general manager of Chesterfield Associates, the contractor that handled much of the construction work, echoed Mr. Schrage’s opinion of working with the village and said he was pleased the project was coming to the finish line so close to its original June 1 deadline, despite the disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Ms. Mulcahy, who eschewed a formal dedication because of the pandemic, has said she looks forward to holding a more public ceremony later this year.

“It’s going to be magnificent,” she said of the finished project.