Over Development / Inappropriate Development
Simply put, over development is the poison that will kill the golden goose. As we all know, people love this area because of its natural beauty, open vistas, fresh air, and rural feel. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that suburban sprawl, McMansion ghettos, charmless villages filled with chain [...]
Posts under ‘Development’
The Five Top Problems Facing Sag Hampton
Why Isn’t the Village of Sag Harbor Supporting the Sag Harbor Gateway Study?
It would seem, at first glance, to be a no-brainer. The Southampton Planning Department recently completed a study that recommends changing the zoning of a small area along the Sag Harbor-Bridgehampton Turnpike (the “Gateway” to Sag Harbor) from Highway Business to Hamlet Office. Since this area lies outside the Village’s borders, its zoning is under the control of the Town. …
A Simple Question with No Simple Answer
The other day a candidate for political office who lives in a different part of the Town, asked me to fill her in on issues important to Sag Harbor. Easy…many of these issues are among my daily obsessions: development, preservation of open space, protecting the environment, affordable housing, transportation issues, preserving the “character” of the area, and education. I may have missed one or two; feel free to remind me if I did. Anyway, all was going well until she asked me which one was most important. …
Knowing When to Say Maybe
I recently received an e-mail advising me of a meeting to discuss possible developments, including a convenience store, at the Harbor Heights Mobil station on Rt. 114 in Sag Harbor. This e-mail was the first I’d heard of this possibility, and I have not tried to verify any of the information in the message. For all I know the whole thing may be a rumor …
Save Sag Harbor (Cinema)
Yikes! This is serious. The Sag Harbor Cinema is for sale. There’s nothing more iconic in Sag Harbor than the Sag Harbor Cinema, the art-house theater that’s been a part of the local scene for decades. Just look at all the fuss that arose when my fellow Sag Harborites thought they were losing the theater’s sign! Now, it seems, we may be in danger of losing the entire theater and …
So, Where Do We Put the Affordable Housing, Take Two
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 …
Sag Harbor: Still Making History
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, …
Saving Sag Harbor
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 …
So Where Were We?
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
Is This the Land of No?
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 …
