Case Over Jen Stark Mural at Montauk's Surf Lodge Dropped

East Hampton Town has dropped a charge against the manager of the Surf Lodge on Edgemere Street in Montauk for putting up a sign without consulting with the town’s architectural review board, according to the manager’s lawyers. The “sign” in question was a rainbow-like mural by Jen Stark, an artist.

The manager, Julian Bizalion, was scheduled to go on trial before a jury Tuesday on the late-spring charge. 

Thomas W. Horn Jr. and Lawrence Kelly were prepared to present their case that the mural was protected speech and that the town’s code regulates exterior paint to a very limited degree. In a press release, they thanked the jurors who showed up, only to be released from service. “Although Surf Lodge is closed for the winter, we invite all to come by,” they said, “to view the mural by Jen Stark, and enjoy art for art’s sake.”

Michael Sendlenski, the town's prosecutor, declined to comment on the case Thursday.

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