Transportation issues are on everyone's mind again even though the worst of the summer season is over. (So, you're thinking, "what's that got to do with affordable housing? -- wait, I'll get there.) The much hyped South Fork Commuter Connection (SFCC), comprised of extra Long Island Railroad trains between Speonk and Montauk, and feeder buses to take commuters from the ...   more »

What's the one constant in Sag Harbor's 300 year history? Change. Starting as the port for the farmers in Sagaponack, Sag Harbor went on to become a bustling center of trade, home to one of the country's largest whaling fleets, and an industrial center producing everything from watchcases to parts for the lunar landing module. As you walk the village, ...   more »

There's a new and very active group in our community calling itself Save Sag Harbor. Its primary mission is to preserve Main Street's traditional look and business mix -- mostly small locally-owned stores and restaurants -- by preventing national chains and big box stores like CVS from moving in and driving up commercial rents to the point where they are ...   more »

I've been on vacation, but now I'm back. So where were we? Oh, yes...the Town of Southampton has approved a study, to be conducted by its planning department, of the gateway to Sag Harbor along the Bridgehampton-Sag Harbor Turnpike. This has been a little slow getting off the ground, but in the interim, local hero Priscilla Ciccariello has spearheaded an effort by a group she calls "the coalition" to prepare a comprehensive document detailing the reasons the study needs to be done, what specifically needs to be studied, the areas of concern for the surrounding community, the hoped-for outcomes of the study, and the reasoning behind those hopes. It's an amazing document   more »

Sometime it feels like we're living in the Land of No. There are quite a few things in recent memory to which one or another Sag Hampton group has said (or tried to say) NO!

Many folks said no to the NYS Department of Transportation a few years ago when they proposed a roundabout at the wharf end of Main ...   more »

Last Tuesday, a little jet-lagged, yet clear of purpose, I attended a public meeting called by the Planning Board of the Village of Sag Harbor to hear public comments on the proposed condominium project at the old Bulova watchcase factory. I went to speak, or more accurately, to lobby for the inclusion of some affordable units among the 81 condominiums proposed for this site. I figured that I would be one of two or three speakers to bring up this issue, and that I already knew who else would speak on this topic. Never assume... ...   more »

Ordinarily, you wouldn't expect to find a lot of similarities between Sag Harbor and Brooklyn. But while reading an Op-Ed piece in Saturday's New York Times by Jennifer Egan (author of the novel The Keep), about the proposed Atlantic Yards development in Brooklyn, I was surprised at just how many parallels exist between Brooklyn's struggle with that project, and our own issues   more »

No sooner had I posted the story about the proposed ski-resort in Riverhead, than the whole thing started to unravel.  Anthony of the Ozone blog drew my attention to this Newsday article, (thanks Anthony) in which the paper quotes Riverhead Town Supervisor Phil Cardinale as saying, "I would expect him to be chairman, because that's how he signs his letters," ...   more »

File this under "Development/Crazy." My jaw is on the floor. Could this be for real? The blog Ozone quotes from the Long Island Traveler-Watchman (part of the Independent chain of newspapers) that a 500 ft. tall ski resort is planned for Riverhead, and that Riverhead's supervisor Phil Cardinale is already salivating over the prospect. The Traveler-Watchman quotes Cardinale as saying, ...   more »

A couple of weeks ago I made a list of some positive developments here in Sag Hampton in an effort to cheer myself (and you, if you needed it) up. It worked. I had a very pleasant holiday, barely giving a thought to local issues. I hope your holidays were equally pleasant. I called that post "The Good" and promised "The Bad and the Ugly" would follow. With the holidays over, now is as good a time as any to explore the clouds whose silver lining I praised last time. ...   more »