Letters

As I run for trustee, I am grateful for the broad support I am receiving from neighbors and friends throughout Southampton Village. I am hearing appreciation for progress, but also a widely held belief that we can do better, especially on key issues that impact the long-term look and feel of the village.

One of those issues is the industrial-looking solar canopy erected in the Jobs Lane parking lot [“Mayor Defends Installation of Solar Canopy in Jobs Lane Parking Lot as Some Residents Object,” 27east.com, May 2]. I am running independently for trustee to be a clear, unbiased voice on matters like this, so here is my view:

The Johnson Controls project is a good-faith effort to follow through on the village’s 2021 emergency climate resolution, as well as guidance from New York State, to reduce our carbon footprint and improve our energy sustainability. This project is important and has taken a great deal of effort, for which village staff, and especially former Trustee Gina Arresta, should be applauded.

But despite a few presentations on the general scope and status of that project, the public has never been given a full briefing on its details, particularly its visual impacts. While some of its elements may be noncontroversial — the use of smart lighting controls and the installation of solar panels at the maintenance barns come to mind — even these should have been shared and discussed publicly, along with all key elements.

Had these details been presented in the transparent hearing residents deserved, the public outcry over the solar canopies at Jobs Lane could have been avoided. Instead, Village Hall has answered that outcry with vague references to “a three-year effort,” and the person who initially led it, implying either that the public is at fault for not understanding or that one former official is to blame. Both of those implications are unfair and false.

The decision to locate the Jobs Lane canopies was made last fall, not three years ago, when Gina Arresta was a trustee, nor was there any public notice or discussion. Instead, the decision was made out of public view, resulting in a structure that most residents view as an avoidable visual blight, and creating unnecessary skepticism about whether we should continue to address energy sustainability.

The fault was not with the goal, nor was it caused by public indifference. The problem was a flawed process that relied on the judgment of one or two officials and excluded public participation.

We should not let one unfortunate error overshadow our important and laudable commitment to sustainable energy. But future progress must come with public input and transparency. As trustee, I will work to ensure that no major project moves forward without the community engagement that all residents expect and deserve.

Rob Coburn

Southampton Village