There is so much going on in Sag Hampton right now, and I’m not referring to Labor Day weekend fund raisers. Since I devote a lot of space in this blog to the problems we face in our area, I thought I’d stop whining briefly, and comment instead on some recent positive developments.
- The John Jermain Library’s Development Committee is off and running, trying to figure out how to preserve the original library building and create a new one at the same time, while ensuring that both remain actively used by the library-going public. It’s exciting to attend the meetings as they tackle problems from fund raising to design issues to bike lanes. Yes, I said bike lanes. Locating the library next to the park opens the potential for the Library and Park Boards to work together on some problems, the solutions of which will enhance both institutions (can you call a park an institution?) and the community as a whole.
- Apparently, affordable housing is on everyone’s mind. At the CONPOSH/East End Progressive Coalition panel discussion on that topic, we learned that not only has Fred Thiele introduced two bills in the NYS Assembly that address affordable housing issues, but also that the Village is undertaking a review of its zoning code with an eye toward increasing the number of affordable housing units. Maybe, just maybe, it’s not too late.
- Tom Neely, chairman of the East End Transportation Council, who presented the results of the SEEDS (Sustainable East End Development Strategies) study to the Village Board this week, also mentioned that the Council had received a nearly $400,000.00 grant on behalf of the five East End towns to study the possibilities of a bus/rail local mass transit network for the East End. This dovetails nicely with the SEEDS study which recommends exploring mass transit as one way to ease the traffic congestion with which we are currently plagued.
- The Sag Harbor School District is hard at work reviewing and renewing its Shared Decision Making/Site-Based Management Plan, which involves parents, teachers, students and community members in the school decision-making process along with the Board of Education and the school administration. The plan has been on the books since 1994, but has been little used. This time around, I think they’re going to try a little harder to make it work. Thanks to new board member Walter Wilcoxen for getting this going.
- The Sag Harbor CAC, which is appointed by Southampton Town, technically has nothing to do with the Village. However, they met with new Mayor Greg Ferraris anyway, to discuss issues of mutual interest to both Town and Village. While nothing concrete came out of this meeting, everyone involved felt that the dialog that was started at the meeting could lead to positive developments.
- And finally — how did I not know about this? — apparently the Village of Sag Harbor will soon close a deal to be able to provide high-speed wireless access to the entire downtown area. Unfortunately, I don’t have any details. Since I make my living doing computer work, I feel foolish that I didn’t know anything about this. But, if it’s true, Sag Harbor will be the first East End community to offer such a service.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot…happily, for those of us who are looking forward to quieter more reflective mood that descends on Sag Hampton in the fall, Labor Day is here at last. Whew, what a week!
