Published Nov. 24, 2005

"It has not necessarily been a flamboyant past, but for me, it has been very rewarding," Cathy Lester wrote in a 1983 letter to the East Hampton Town Democratic screening committee.

Ms. Lester would eventually become East Hampton Town Supervisor, but at the time she was seeking the Democrats' nomination for town trustee, her first foray into town politics. She won the nomination and served for two terms before becoming a member of the town planning board for three years, then a town board member, and finally, in 1995, winning election as town supervisor. Ms. Lester, who was 60, died on Monday. The family did not know the cause of death as of press time.

A baywoman from the age of 16, she was passionate about the town's harbors and bays and determined to protect the natural environment and a way of life she loved. "That led her to a political career that she never envisioned," said Lynn Ryan, Ms. Lester's executive assistant during her second term as supervisor.

Born on March 4, 1945, in Southampton and raised in Tuckahoe, Ms. Lester was a daughter of the former Helen Dix and Ruben Shaffer. Her father was a boatbuilder and the co-owner and manager of a boatyard. Growing up, Ms. Lester spent most of her free time with her father at the yard and worked there in the summers. "I seem to have a compelling urge to be near the water," she wrote in that 1983 letter.

She left high school after her sophomore year, and on Sept. 7, 1961, was married to Thomas Lester, an East Hampton bayman. The couple worked together on the bay until the following year, when their daughter, Della Ann, was born. After a few years at home with her daughter, Ms. Lester returned to fishing.

"I think she was as proud of being a baywoman as anything else in the world," said Brad Loewen, her nephew by marriage.

With her husband, Ms. Lester became active in the East Hampton Town Baymen's Association and later was a founding member and president of the Northwest Alliance, a group that led the successful drive for the preservation of the Grace Estate in Northwest Woods and Barcelona Neck.

Both organizations believed that developing the Grace Estate on the banks of Northwest Harbor would harm the harbor's pristine quality and its value as a shellfish resource.

Her involvement in that cause was the beginning of her public life. By example, she encouraged others to become more active in preservation and town politics. "She was kind of the groundbreaker for so many of us that came behind her," Mr. Loewen said. It was largely because of her that Mr. Loewen, the outgoing president of the East Hampton Town Baymen's Association, became a member of the town planning board 16 years ago. This month, Mr. Loewen was elected to the town board.

"Cathy, with her husband, Tom, represented one of the strongest, best traditions in the baymen's community - living with the environment and from the environment. She was an outstanding, insightful person," Arnold Leo, the secretary of the baymen's association and a longtime friend, said Tuesday.

As a town trustee, Ms. Lester became involved in efforts to supplement the town's natural population of clams. She opposed the "relay" of clams from areas close to New York City to town waters because they were found to be contaminated with heavy metals.

Instead, she worked with the baymen's association and Democratic Supervisor Judith Hope's administration on ways to raise shellfish here. She supported the idea of allowing baymen to create small aquaculture projects, a departure from the association's strict opposition to aquaculture on public bottomland.

In 1985, shellfish populations were destroyed by the first in a series of brown algae blooms. Two years later, and in large part due to Ms. Lester's work, the East Hampton Town Shellfish Hatchery was established on Fort Pond Bay in Montauk with the help of a $164,000 grant from Gov. Mario M. Cuomo's administration.

In 1987, Ms. Lester won a seat on the town board and continued to champion the preservation of open space, public access to the water, and protection of the town's harbors and bays. After two terms as councilwoman, she won the top position in town government in 1995.

Lisa Liquori, a former town planning director, who became friends with her at Town Hall, recalled that Ms. Lester was set to attend a conference upstate for new town supervisors when a snowstorm hit the East End and kept her in East Hampton. "She just had to learn the job as she was going, and she did," Ms. Liquori said Tuesday.

"I was always struck by Cathy. She would be in a room with a group of 'experts' and . . . she would ask the most relevant questions," Ms. Liquori said. Ms. Lester never graduated from high school, but earned her high school equivalency diploma in 1977. "She was a very bright woman, and would just put her knowledge together in a way that I was constantly impressed," Ms. Liquori said.

"She has truly left her mark," said Town Councilwoman Debra Foster, a friend. "If it weren't for Cathy Lester we wouldn't recognize our Northwest Woods in East Hampton. They would be totally developed."

"People always said, 'She knows what's below the surface and what's above it,' " Ms. Ryan said Tuesday. Yet, despite having attained the highest elected office in town, Ms. Lester considered herself neither a leader nor a politician, Ms. Ryan said.

In 1999, Ms. Lester lost a third bid for town supervisor. She had served in public office for 15 years and said at the time that she had no intention of returning to government work. Instead, she earned her real estate license, began working for Allan M. Schneider Associates, and became a Democratic committeewoman.

Ms. Lester battled liver cancer in 2004, but it was rare for her to talk about her health, Ms. Liquori said. "She was just so strong that we forgot she was sick."

Ms. Lester is survived by her daughter, Della Bennett of Southampton, and two sisters, Dorothy Giacoia of South Carolina and Gail Wienclawski of Southampton. Her husband died in 1992.

The family will receive visitors at Yardley and Pino Funeral Home in East Hampton from 7 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 23, and from 2 to 4 p.m. on Friday. A service will be held at the funeral home on Friday from 7 to 9 p.m. Ms. Lester is to be cremated.

Memorial contributions have been suggested to the East Hampton Trails Presevation Society, The Baymen's Association, or the Springs Fire Department.

With Reporting by Russell Drumm

Some people like to relax here in the summertime and some people like to “frantically relax. ” Frantically relaxing is sports galore, parties galore, benefits, shopping sprees, and making sure you can get into the newest, coolest restaurant of the season. I am exhausted already.

Some people just like to relax.

This might entail not washing the seawater out of your hair before you fall into bed, reading a whole book, and enjoying a cocktail that does not require exotic fruits, vegetables, herbal extracts, flowers, and $14.

668 the Gig Shack is a fun, funky restaurant for people who know how to relax. Right on Main Street in Montauk, it has an outdoor bar to the right, an indoor dining room, and some outdoor tables for watching the passing sidewalk show.

668 the Gig Shack
782 Main Street
Montauk
631-668-2727
Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner seven days a week .

The wall on one side is covered in tin roofing material, the ceiling is white with blue Pollock-esque paint spatters, and the bar top is 5 billion bottle caps encased in resin. Surf movies play on a large screen and a black-and-white photograph of Lee Radziwell and Bianca and Mick Jagger greets you over the toilet in one of the restrooms. They all look frightfully thin and pleased with themselves, frantically relaxing in Montauk, circa 1972.

On the night we went it was raining but we were able to sit outside anyway.

A young couple nearby was playing backgammon waiting for their brokendown convertible rental car to be replaced.

A girl behind us piped up to recommend the crispy fish tacos. Three little munchkins were happily wrapping themselves in colorful Guatemalan shawls provided by the restaurant, and posing for pictures by the window.

We started with the spicy Thai mussels, the chef’s special soup of the day, corn chowder, and the Cuban salad with avocado, black beans, and pineapple and lime vinaigrette. The spicy Thai mussels were great — a big bowl full of small but tender mussels in rich coconut-milk broth with flecks of scallion, red pepper, lemongrass, and the occasional bite of diced, fresh jalapeno peppers. It was served with big slices of grilled bread for dipping.

The corn chowder was also good. It was a creamy purée of corn with a hint of cheese for added richness. The Cuban salad could have been a meal in itself. It was a huge portion of romaine and mixed lettuces, big chunks of perfectly ripe avocado, and a very good homemade zesty lime vinaigrette.

For entrees we got the “Montacos,” crispy fish tacos with mango salsa and creamy slaw, the fish special of the night, a spicy whole fried porgy with a citrusy aioli sauce on the side, and “Lamburginis,” lamb sliders on cheddar cheese buns with aioli. The Montacos were good but not what we expected. Instead of flour tortillas, these were served in crisp corn tortilla shells with a sweet mango salsa and a purple cabbage slaw.

The chunks of fish were generous and cooked just right. They were even better with a dash of the hot sauce provided on the table.

The Lamburginis were cute and delicious.

Three little lamb patties on three tender brioche-like cheddar buns and a gutsy, garlicky aioli. Our only complaint was that the lamb patties were a little dry from overcooking. The whole fried porgy was the star of the meal.

Considered by some to be fun to catch but a trash fish to eat, it is a tender, mild white fish, as long as you don’t mind picking around the multitude of bones.

This one reminded me of the great whole fried fish dishes you can get in Thai restaurants. It was crisp on the outside, and the flesh was still moist inside without getting greasy. With a splash of lemon juice and the accompanying tart sauce, it was delicious.

The food at 668 the Gig Shack is served on paper and plastic plates lined with mock Honolulu Times newspaper.

They serve only beer and wine but the choices are varied and affordable. The beer selection is especially creative with obscure India pale ales and microbrewery selections like Dead Guy Ale, Steam Engine, and Hoptical Illusion.

Prices for tapas and “small stuff” are $6. 50 to $16. “Global Gourmet” entrees and “Bohemian Barbecue” items are $11 to $24. On Wednesdays and Fridays, sushi and sake are available.

Our waiter was charming and knowledgeable.

Well, as we found out toward the end of our meal, he is the son of the owners and all three sons play a part in the running of the Gig Shack.

For desserts we were offered the red velvet cake and a chocolate cupcake with caramel butter-cream icing and a dash of sea salt on top. Both were excellent.

Having had a scary red velvet cake experience at another restaurant a few weeks ago, I was a bit gun-shy about trying it again. This one was a slice of tender, fresh cake with light vanilla cream cheese frosting, and best of all, a sprinkling of toasted pecans around the edges.

The chocolate cupcake was also very good. The owners of Gig Shack were about to sit down nearby for their own late supper but Tracey, the wife-mom, popped up from her chair to come over and insist that we wait until our butter cream had come to room temperature before we try it. She then personally grated the sea salt onto our cupcake. Yes, she is a pastry chef. And she cares.

The rainy skies cleared, the broken down convertible Sebring was replaced, and the three adorable munchkins wandered off with their parents for some ice cream. We had just had some fresh local fish, simply and well prepared, served with a smile.

This is what relaxing in the summertime is all about.

Tempers flared and accusations flew last Thursday night as the East Hampton Town Board considered an ethics code change that could force the chairman of the Town Republican Committee to choose between his post with the party and his seat on the East Hampton Town Trustees.

The town ethics code prohibits members of elected or appointed boards from serving as members of political committees. The revision under discussion last week would also prohibit them from serving as party bosses, meaning that Thomas E. Knobel, a town trustee who is the Republican chairman but not a Republican committeeman, could not keep both jobs.

Local Republican bylaws allow for a chairperson who is not a voting committee member. East Hampton Democrats, in contrast, choose a leader from among their committee members.

"You cannot stop me from running, but your proposal could stop me from serving," Mr. Knobel said, speaking toward the end of the hearing. He vowed not to go down "without a fight."

The Republican Party faithful came out in force to protest the change, characterizing it as "vindictive," senseless, and "political payback." There were several instances of shouting, and when a Montauk man refused to leave the podium, Supervisor Bill McGintee called a five-minute recess, and the entire board stood up and left the room.

It was political theater with a live television audience, one member of which left his couch and walked to Town Hall to take part midway through the hearing.

The audience members' comments ranged from testimonials to Mr. Knobel's good character to questions about whether the town board has the power to pass laws governing another elected board.

Councilwoman Debra Foster, a Democrat, said she was not sure why the original law was passed.

"It makes no sense," said Reginald Cornelia, a former Republican committeeman who left his post several years ago when he was appointed to the town housing authority.

"It doesn't deny anyone the right to run for office. The purpose of this law is an attempt to assure that officials and appointees of the Town of East Hampton be free of conflicts of interest," Mr. McGintee said. Since 2000, the town ethics board has been asking the town board either to make the law consistent or to do away with it.

"I cannot see any possible way how [Mr. Knobel's chairmanship] would be a conflict of interest," said Tim Sullivan, a former Republican committeeman.

"Is there anyone from any party who, once elected, is nonpartisan?" asked Rhoda Bation of Springs, another Republican committeewoman.

"The only thing that is not political is extremely, extremely deep sleep, so let's not kid ourselves here," said Stuart Vorpahl. He said that opposes the law in principle, but also believes the town board cannot impose it on the town trustees. "You can apply it to anyone you hire or appoint, but not to other elected officials." If the town board wishes to do that, he said, it should be put to a public vote.

For more than a decade the ethics code has prohibited members of governing bodies such as the planning board or architectural review board from serving on political committees. In 1995, former Republican Councilwoman Nancy McCaffrey introduced an amendment to the code to keep elected officials from serving on political committees, as well. Mr. Knobel, a councilman at the time who was not yet on the Republican Committee, supported the measure.

He gave up his seat on the town board to run for supervisor in 1997, lost, became a Republican committeeman, and was elected chairman the following year. The following year, when he won his bid for town trustee, he gave up his role as a voting committee member, but remained chairman. He has since been elected to two more terms as a town trustee.

"This to me is almost a political lynching. What you could not accomplish at the ballot box you want to accomplish here," said Herbert McKay of Montauk.

"The public wants Tom Knobel to be a trustee," said Joseph Loffreno of Montauk. "This looks like political payback to me." Mr. Loffreno ranted against what he saw as the board's overt partisanship, his voice growing louder and louder, until Mr. McGintee told him he was out of order and asked him to sit down. He refused, and it was then that Mr. McGintee called the recess.

After the break, Mr. Knobel spoke. "I care about being on the trustees. I'm active. I want the chance to serve the public again as a town trustee."

With one Republican trustee in very poor health, another now living in North Carolina, and Mr. Knobel facing the proposed rule change, "it looks like the Democratic town board is trying to force Democrats onto the town trustees," said Bill Gardiner of East Hampton, who ran for town board on the Republican ticket in 2003.

Paul Fiondella, who walked to Town Hall from his house after seeing the hearing on television, was the only one in the audience to speak in favor of the change. "This is about protecting the public from undue concentrations of power," Mr. Fiondella said.

Some auidence members accused board members of calling Mr. Fiondella during the recess. They denied the charge, and Mr. Fiondella was unfazed. "If the board passes this law and you feel it constrains your political freedoms, you should take the town to court," he said.

"Congratulations on showing your power by walking away from me," Mr. Loffreno said, when he returned to the podium a second time. He said he was afraid that the Democrats might "send your cronies after me to attack my house. Don't attack my children."

"That's never, ever, ever going to happen," said Democratic Councilman Job Potter.

Hugh King, the chairman of the ethics board, sat in the back of the room throughout the hearing, but did not speak. The next day, he defended the ethics code and the proposed change. "The state has said it's constitutional," he said. "To say Mr. Knobel is not a member of a committee and doesn't vote, does that mean he doesn't have any influence? The code is supposed to protect against even the appearance of impropriety."

"I got myself elected and I stayed in office according to the current law," Mr. Knobel said on Friday. As for why he supported Ms. McCaffrey's ethics code change in 1995, but opposes this one, he said "Nancy wanted to do it. She felt it was a good thing to do and I went along with it." His bigger point is "not about being above ethics, it's about having a code unfairly applied to one person," he said. More generally, he asked, "To what extent does the town board have the authority to regulate people's associations?"

Christopher Kelley, a Democratic Committeeman and former Democratic chairman, agreed with Mr. Knobel and is also opposed to the original law. "It's the most ridiculous, unconstitutional law in the world. You can't punish people for expression of their political views. . . . The fact that it covers elected officials is particularly ridiculous because they have to appear on party lines on the ballot. It's silly to pretend they're not involved in a political committee."

Ironically, in 1995, when Ms. McCaffrey's ethics code change was under consideration, it was the Democrats who came out in force to oppose it, using much the same logic as Republicans used last Thursday.

"I personally think it's a good law," Mr. McGintee said Friday. "I disagree that everything is partisan. Elected officials should be free of the influence of any parties or any party bosses," he said. "Politics interferes with the business of governing."

Raymond Gualtieri, the East Hampton School District superintendent, announced last Thursday that in March, the district will propose spending $79.7 million to expand the John M. Marshall Elementary School and East Hampton High School. That sum is about $10 million less than the one proposed in a referendum that was soundly defeated in June. The earlier proposal would have allowed for a new middle school building and a greater expansion of the high school.

The new figure includes 5-percent inflation increases for construction costs for the duration of the project. In today's dollars, it translates to just under $67 million. Dr. Gualtieri told those attending last Thursday's districtwide site-based committee meeting that "in the best-case scenario," the expansion could be completed by September 2012.

The school board has asked for help from Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. and Senator Kenneth P. LaValle in working to repeal the Wicks Law, legislation that requires that government institutions hire several different contractors for public works projects that cost over $50,000.

It has been estimated that this requirement can add as much as 30 percent to the cost of some projects. If the Wicks Law were repealed, the school could save as much as $10 million, according to Dr. Gualtieri.

Enrollment at all three schools is expected to rise over the next 10 years, Dr. Gualtieri said, adding that the buildings are already overcrowded. The high school has 1,071 students in a building meant to serve 800.

Some of those attending the meeting - there were about 30 people in all, including members of the elementary school, middle school, and high school site-based committees - wondered what Dr. Gualtieri planned to do if the referendum were defeated.

"We're going to be buying Band-Aids out the wazoo," he replied.

Specifically, the district will continue to buy portable classrooms. It already has 10 of these, at a cost of $300,000 each for a three-year lease.

"If the referendum fails in March, the first priority is to get kids out of the middle school basement and build a trailer park at John Marshall," Dr. Gualtieri said. The district would move fifth graders from the building to 10 portable trailers, he said.

The district would then have to repair the roofs of all three buildings and remove two oil tanks at the high school with money from its regular budget. There would be an attempt to pass pieces of the expansion project one at a time.

"It's going to be a significant amount of money for a patch job," said Dr. Gualtieri, who added that the district spent almost to $200,000 preparing the last referendum for a vote. That sum will also go up if a second bond vote is defeated.

Wendy Hall, the school board president, asked those attending the meeting to start informing the community about the new plan.

"We are really between a rock and a hard place," she said. "We feel that this project is a reality. Talk it up and get excited about it. We need that."

Organizers of a benefit concert on Wednesday to raise funds for Denis Craine, an East Hampton man with Lou Gehrig's disease, have found willing hands just about everywhere they have turned, from the headline performers Paul Simon, Suzanne Vega, and Dr. John to vendors and high school student volunteers.

However, they did not find the nods they were looking for on Tuesday when they asked the East Hampton Town Board to absorb the cost of overtime town police services, which could be as much as $15,000.

"It's not our money, it's taxpayer money," Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman said. "What you're asking for basically is a gift to a charity."

Grants to several nonprofit organizations are made yearly as part of the town budget, but those funds are included in budget planning and the public has a chance to comment on them before they are approved.

"Community Effort"

"This is one of the few benefits that occurs in this community that serves someone in this community, someone who has given to this community," said Laura Anker, an East Hampton School Board member and an organizer of the concert, which will be held on the high school grounds.

"We're hoping the town will waive the overtime fee, in the spirit of this being a real community effort," Ms. Anker told the board. "This is a different kind of benefit because of the numbers of people Denis has touched. In a sense, he's done that rather than take care of his family, and has been left with a devastating disease. And now his family is in desperate need."

Mr. Craine has five children, three of school age. He is the founder of a group called Wilderness Experience, or WE, which sponsors events to raise awareness and fight bias. He was also involved in the Study Circles project, part of a town anti-bias task force initiative.

"Everyone else in the community is donating. I just think it's pretty mean-spirited," Ms. Anker said.

According to Town Police Chief Todd Sarris, fees for extra police services are waived for some traditional events, such as the St. Patrick's Day parade, and for small fund-raisers for "bona fide charities" that may require only traffic control rather than uniformed officers. In any event, Mr. Sarris can make a recommendation, but the decision is the town board's. Overtime fees were paid recently during a shark fishing tournament and the New York Hamptons tennis events.

18 Officers

Town board members worry that concert traffic could clog streets leading into and out of the village, and that it will be difficult to secure the site, where up to 3,000 concertgoers are expected. No one will be allowed to bring in alcohol or food. The Fairway restaurant in Sagaponack was expected to set up a concession stand, and those who pay extra for V.I.P. tickets in a tent.

Twenty town police officers, almost half the 45-member force, had been scheduled to work on Wednesday for up to 12 hours each. Chief Sarris said, following a meeting with organizers yesterday, that he would reduce the number to 18, some of whom could work a partial shift. He asked that the organizers place $10,000 in escrow to cover the $60-per-hour overtime costs.

"This is a significant event," Chief Sarris said. "It would have a significant impact on my budget." The town board agreed to the request.

"This could pop up 30 times a year. If we're expected to do whatever it takes, our police budget could be blown out of the water," Councilman Pete Hammerle said. "There are so many of these events." In addition, in light of worries over crowd and traffic control, "I don't want to send the message that the high school should become the next concert venue for fund-raisers."

Ms. Anker questioned whether such police presence is needed. CNC Security, which has handled events at Jones Beach and Central Park, will have 30 staffers on hand, and a parking service will oversee the placement of cars on two high school fields. All parking is expected to be accommodated on site.

Traffic control could probably be handled by fewer officers, said Chief Sarris. "However, my concern is that if there's some kind of an outbreak in there, then it's going to be our responsibility to go in there and resolve it." He said two or three officers will be stationed inside the gates. Also, "we have every intention of shutting down Long Lane once the concert gets started," he said.

Annual Event?

Councilwoman Pat Mansir questioned whether it was legal, or appropriate, for the town to spend thousands to provide police coverage for a fund-raiser that benefits only one person. "There are many people suffering in this town who need help in this way," she said.

It would be different, Councilman Hammerle said, if "any family in need could apply."

"It's not to benefit one person, it's to benefit one family, who are the chosen designees of this year's benefit," Ms. Anker said. Organizers hope to make this an annual event that could benefit a variety of local organizations and individuals, she said. Town board members cautioned them to wait and see.

"They're not professionals, and yet they're holding a rather large event, very unprofessionally," Mr. Hammerle said. "And they're holding it in everyone's face that it's for a good cause. I'm not denying the cause."

Approximately 1,500 tickets to the show had been sold by press time. Ms. Anker said they hoped to sell 2,000 general admission tickets, at $50 each or $30 for students, and 400 V.I.P. tickets for $200. She said leftover tickets would likely be available at the door, but provisions for last-minute sales, which town board members were concerned could cause an unruly rush, had not yet been made.

Proceeds would go directly to the Craine family, Ms. Anker said. Larger donations could be made to Share the Care, a division of the Amagansett Children's Foundation, a nonprofit formed to provide support for local children and families, and are tax-deductible.

In an effort to honor Mr. Craine's vision of an integrated society, the Study Circles groups bought $3,000 worth of tickets to be distributed to minorities and lower-income residents "who don't generally have the opportunity to come to these kinds of events," Ms. Anker said.

The concert is sponsored by a combination of organizations and citizens who six weeks ago decided to stage the event. They include a group of Mr. Craine's friends, including John Kowalenko, a caterer overseeing the fare in the V.I.P. tent, Michael Brosnan of Montauk, a contractor and entertainment producer, and Paige Kevin of Northwest Woods, another entertainment producer.

The school district, the Amagansett Children's Foundation, Share the Care, and the WE organization are sponsors as well.

Concert organizers first met with the town board two weeks ago, "as a courtesy," Ms. Anker said. They were asked to return with more detailed plans, but proceeded before that occurred, prompting board members to feel they were being dealt with "in bad faith," in Councilwoman Diana Weir's words.

Although the school district is exempt from many town regulations, this event requires a mass-gathering permit for the V.I.P. tent, the town board contends. It was applied for and is expected to be issued at a town board meeting tonight.

"I almost felt like this event was going to go on regardless," Mr. Hammerle said. After consulting a school attorney, Noel McStay, the East Hampton school superintendent, said yesterday that the district should be exempt from mass-gathering permits. "Otherwise, we would have to get a permit for every basketball game or other event," he said. It remained unclear if the town could require other organizations using school grounds to obtain a permit.

"This could be a mess, this concert," Mr. Schneiderman said Tuesday.

"There could have been better planning," Mr. McStay acknowledged.

The planners, who are not "professional concert people," Ms. Anker pointed out, went to the town board immediately after learning Paul Simon would do the show. "If we ever do it again we would have learned a whole lot," she said.

Chief Sarris, who said providing police manpower at no cost was "a very bad precedent," met yesterday afternoon with Mr. Brosnan and village police, whose primary concern is traffic back-up on Newtown Lane. The situation has prompted the chief to draft a policy guiding future similar decisions. Ms. Anker said she hoped the town board could be convinced to pay the costs.

According to Eric Bregman, the town attorney, if the escrow is required and not paid by tomorrow or Monday, the board could go to court for a restraining order that would allow police to take charge of concert funds. Alternately, the town could sue for reimbursement of incurred costs.

"If they're going to require local organizations trying to raise money for local causes to expend that kind of money, then there are going to be no benefits," said Ms. Anker yesterday. She cited the difficulties local organizations face in raising funds.

Regardless, she said, the concert will go on.

East Hampton is far from alone in dealing with the emerging health threat from a class of industrial chemicals used in firefighting and many other projects. Groundwater south and east of the town airport was found to be contaminated by perfluorooctane sulfonate, or PFOS, and perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA. The compounds also have been found near MacArthur Airport in the Town of Islip and near Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach. These chemicals are persistent and toxic at very low concentrations, but the Environmental Protection Agency has issued only an unenforceable health advisory about the safe level in drinking water. 

Since PFOS and PFOA were identified here, the Suffolk County Water Authority has installed more than eight miles of water mains in Wainscott in a massive joint project with East Hampton Town. State inspectors from the Department of Environmental Conservation got involved, as well, identifying four possible sources of the dangerous groundwater pollution. 

Federal agencies are notably absent from the PFOS and PFOA problem, and Washington has not offered help to the dozens, if not hundreds of communities affected by potentially harmful drinking water. A so-called action plan released by the E.P.A. late last week did not promise any help with remediation and failed to set a hard and fast rule for maximum exposure. As a result, state and local governments and water authorities have had to go it alone.

Meanwhile, a House of Representatives committee is looking into whether the federal Centers for Disease Control might have quashed a report that indicated that some classes of the chemicals could be harmful at levels well below the E.P.A.’s current advisory level of 70 parts per trillion.

PFOS and PFOA are a national problem. Michigan began statewide testing last year and discovered that nearly 19 million residents have been drinking water with measurable levels of the chemicals, reaching 540 times higher than the E.P.A.’s safety advisory level in one community. Other contaminated sites have been found in Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, West Virginia, and upstate New York. Gov. Andrew Cuomo is said to be considering setting an aggressive state limit of 10 parts per trillion.

The chemicals’ effects in humans are not as well understood, though in 2005 an E.P.A. panel concluded that PFOA was a likely carcinogen. Other studies have indicated possible thyroid effects and suspicions about the chemicals’ role in heart disease and cancers of the prostate and pancreas.

Despite the known and suspected risks, Washington has not set any enforceable regulations for the entire class of chemicals. The prospect for action is dimmed by the appointment of Andrew Wheeler, a climate change denier and former coal lobbyist, to lead the E.P.A. Mr. Wheeler has been the acting head of the agency since Scott Pruitt stepped down. In the last half-year, he has weakened emissions rules for coal plants, taken on federal regulations protecting streams and wetlands, and he wants to roll back clean-air regulations for cars and trucks. Observers of the E.P.A. say they have their doubts that PFOS/PFOA will be regulated at all during the Trump administration.

Relying on the states to act is a pig in a poke. Only a handful so far have set drinking water standards for human exposure. This means that without federal limits, millions of Americans have no protections at all.

A decision last month by the East Hampton Town Board to toughen the rules about outdoor lighting, in particular to end the use of strings of bulbs to create outdoor gathering spaces at restaurants and nightclubs, is a good one. But whether it will be enforced is another question.

Officials have found it very difficult to limit the spread of bars and other establishments onto their lawns for crowds that can often number in the hundreds. By cutting the lights, so to speak, the town could tamp down on the party scene. As written in the new law, “The need for clarification has arisen as commercial properties are more frequently utilizing string lighting to delineate new, unapproved, outdoor areas for commercial use.” (Holiday lights will continue to be allowed, but limited to between Nov. 15 and Jan. 15.)

The effectiveness of the new rules will, once again, come down to how the Ordinance Enforcement Department performs. This is questionable, since it has for a long time had a near-perfect blind spot about lighting. This page has for years complained that a section of the East Hampton Town code prohibiting “internally illuminated” signs is essentially ignored. So, too, are many aspects of the more recent lighting rules. 

Yes, the Planning and Building Departments, as well as the appointed boards, follow the rules, but once something is built it seems anything goes. To some degree, string lights with visible filaments are already prohibited under the town’s dark-sky regulations; why no one in authority has noticed is a mystery.

We hope that the town’s code enforcers begin paying more attention. If there is one thing that should be easy to police it is the lighting law.

According to The Los Angeles Times, in the two-plus years that recreational marijuana use was made broadly legal, an expected tax windfall has not materialized. This is because a huge black market sprang up after a majority of California cities chose not to allow pot shops. On top of that, legal sellers say, state, county, and local sales taxes, which can reach higher than 30 percent, nearly price legitimate shops out of the recreational market. Able to underprice legitimate sellers, untaxed home-delivery services quickly stepped in. 

As far as cultivation goes, California’s example is not so good either. Burdensome licensing rules have thwarted many farmers who would otherwise take part. And because of the vibrant black market, there is no reason for longtime illicit suppliers to change business models.

In our own Suffolk County, there is some interest in an expected component of the state’s looming legalization that would allow counties, large towns, and cities to decide for themselves whether to allow weed shops. As in California, untaxed and unregulated home delivery would thrive under this condition, while weed buyers would just jump in their cars to drive to wherever retail shops were legal.

One of the other problems with the way Gov. Andrew Cuomo is thought to be leaning is in preferring that marijuana be grown indoors. This would all but shut out the state’s small farms, handing a massive windfall to well-funded investors who could cover the sky-high startup costs. Indoor growing is far from green, too, consuming massive amounts of electricity for lighting, heat, and air circulation, frequently relying on chemical fertilizers, and producing greenhouse gases while consuming and potentially contaminating massive quantities of water. From the governor’s perspective, it might make sense: Large marijuana concerns would likely be hearty political donors. However, it would kill smaller green producers or push them into the black market.

California’s example is a cautionary tale of how not to legalize recreational marijuana. As New York lawmakers consider their own version, they should look west to see what works and what does not and for lessons about the pitfalls of poorly crafted regulations.

The State of New York is barreling fast toward the anticipated legalization of the sale and possession of marijuana as a way to increase tax receipts and reduce the impact of arrests for possession and sale, which fall disproportionately on people of color and the poor. Whether legalization would be statewide is an open question; the draft under consideration in Albany would allow cities and counties to retain current prohibitions. 

The Suffolk Legislature is considering its own “opt-out” bill, sponsored by Legislator Rob Trotta of Fort Salonga, a retired county police detective. Mr. Trotta’s view is that marijuana can lead to the use of more dangerous addictive drugs. This was echoed by several speakers at a Feb. 25 hearing in Hauppauge. The link between pot and opioid addiction, however, is not clear-cut.

Numerous studies have shown that, contrary to Mr. Trotta’s opinion, marijuana legalization is associated with lower rates of opioid use.

In the Journal of General Internal Medicine recently an analysis of an insurance database of more than 4.8 million medical marijuana users showed the rate of prescriptions for high-risk opioids, as well as the chronic use of all opioids, was “modestly lower.” According to another study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, prescriptions for all opioids decreased by 3.7 million doses a day after medical marijuana dispensaries opened in the United States. Other studies have demonstrated a reduction in the use of other pain medicines, as well as in alcohol and tobacco consumption. Certainly there is room for more research, but the overwhelming evidence is that marijuana is less of a gateway drug than some fear.

Mr. Trotta’s stance against legalized marijuana is likely to have more to do with his bid for the Republican Suffolk executive nomination than anything else. He announced his candidacy last month and would need to get past County Comptroller John Kennedy, the other major G.O.P. hopeful according to Newsday, to appear on the ballot in November. Whipping up fears about drug-crazed abusers could play well among those voters Mr. Trotta would need to succeed. 

Make no mistake, there is a disturbing subtext to Mr. Trotta’s bill, namely the disproportionate number of marijuana arrests of people of color, who are significantly more often to be in trouble with the law for possession than whites. Start Smart NY, a group in favor of legalization, presented a report this week indicating that blacks and Latinos accounted for between 60 and 66 percent of marijuana possession arrests in Nassau and Suffolk Counties while being only about 30 percent of the population. Within the white population, the reverse is true: In Suffolk, whites are 69 percent of the population but accounted for just 32 percent of marijuana arrests. The arrest rate for whites was slightly more equitable in Nassau County, but only by about 8 percent, which is still a massive imbalance.

As objectionable a strategy as Mr. Trotta’s approach might be, it could be smart politics for him and other county Republicans. In 2016, Donald Trump won Suffolk by a healthy margin over Hillary Clinton in a presidential campaign in which the eventual winner’s opening shots were at people of color, and he has continued to fan racial divisions in the two years since taking office. A key portion of the state measure would allow low-level marijuana arrest and conviction records to be sealed, an issue that now can make it difficult for some New Yorkers to find or retain jobs. 

We hope the Legislature votes down Mr. Trotta’s bill. Access to marijuana will continue to be easy whether or not it is legalized in Suffolk. But if it is not made legal the unfair effect of its prohibition on people of color will certainly continue. 

What to do about weekend hunting? A citizens group recently asked the East Hampton Town Board to ban shooting on town properties on either Saturdays or Sundays over concerns about safety and noise. Also implied, if not stated outright, is the group’s general opposition to hunting, which it has made clear on other occasions: There is no way the town board is going that far at this time.

Weekend hunting had been prohibited for a long time. New York State allowed it again about four years ago, and the town followed. Though only a small portion of the population hunts, it seemed unfair to force them to take off from work to do so while every other form of recreation we can think of is allowed seven days a week.

The wrinkle on the South Fork is that a significant portion of the taxpaying population is here only on weekends. Some among them believe that they have a right to feel safe on public lands and free of the sound of gunfire. Wrapped within the issue of weekend hunting is the question of whose interests town officials should consider — the year-rounders, a few of whom might hunt, or part-timers, who keep the local economy humming and are less interested in shooting sports.

Rather than limiting hunting in East Hampton to one weekend day on town lands, an alternative could be crafted to accommodate both sides. In our vision, hunting would be allowed annually on a rotating basis, setting certain locations aside for weekend gunning, and then letting them lie fallow, so to speak, the following year. The state and county, which own huge tracts here where hunting is allowed, might be asked to do the same.

Because the tick-borne disease epidemic has made woodland walks less appealing most of the year, more people, hunters and hikers alike, are now competing for space during the cold months when the blood- thirsty pests are less active. Finding a way to provide for both should be possible.