To Fight Affordable Housing

A dispute over two proposed affordable housing developments in the Wainscott School District has escalated in recent weeks, with the Wainscott School Board, the East Hampton Town housing director, and the president of a nonprofit organization that has developed low-income housing here at odds.

At issue is a 49-unit development on 31 acres of land between Stephen Hand’s Path and Daniel’s Hole Road owned by East Hampton Town. It would include 20 one-bedroom, 20 two-bedroom, and 8 three-bedroom apartments. A superintendent’s unit would also be included.

In a letter to Wainscott taxpayers on Oct. 8, titled “Save Wainscott School,” the school board also cited a proposal by the Village of Sag Harbor to convert a group of eight small buildings on Route 114 called the Cottages into an eight-unit affordable-housing project, using money paid by the developers of the Bulova condominium.

The housing proposals would force the school to undergo a “fundamental change” to the “detriment of our present and future students,” the letter said. Taken together, David Eagan, the hamlet’s school board president, described the two as a “double whammy,” and said the district “doesn’t have the capacity to handle both.”

“Wainscott is clearly in danger,” Mr. Eagan said on Monday, from his law firm’s offices on Pantigo Road. “This school will be fundamentally altered forever — and it won’t be for the better.”

The three-member school board has relied on a report it commissioned from S.E.S. Study Team, a Canastota, N.Y., consulting firm that works with school districts throughout New York State. The consultants estimate that between 70 and 110 additional students would live in the district if the proposals went through.

This would not only mean additional classroom space would have to be constructed at what is now a two-room school building, but between $1 million and $1.6 million in yearly tuition for students in grades 4 to 12, who usually transfer to the East Hampton School District. The consultants also cite staffing and transportation increases, saying that Wainscott taxpayers would likely see tax increases between 66 and 169 percent.

The school board’s letter concluded with the comment that the Wainscott School would be “forced to become a conventional grade school rather than the unique and highly effective educational institution that has served our community well for generations.”

Mr. Eagan, who is an attorney specializing in land use, described the situation as the “first round of a 12-round match.” Though still early, he said Wainscott residents are vocal and united in opposition.

“We’re not taking a position with respect to affordable housing — whether good, bad, or indifferent,” said Mr. Eagan, who has served on the board for eight years. “We’re just focused on the school.”

But others see the debate as one of dollars and cents.

“If you look at school taxes, Wainscott has the lowest school taxes in the Town of East Hampton,” said Tom Ruhle, the director of housing for the Town of East Hampton.

Using a “theoretical house” valued at $500,000 and 2014 figures, Mr. Ruhle said a Springs taxpayer was paying $4,317 in school taxes, a Montauk homeowner $3,144, a Sag Harbor homeowner $3,048, and an Amagansett homeowner $2,296. The Wainscott homeowner’s school tax was $1,886. In addition, the tax rate in Wainscott decreased by 11 percent this year.

“If needed affordable housing doesn’t go into Wainscott, it has to go to some district that already has higher taxes,” Mr. Ruhle said.

Still, tensions are running high. “We’re all in favor of educating our children, so long as someone else pays for it,” he said. “This debate shouldn’t characterize educating the future young people of East Hampton as a burden.”

Neither Mr. Ruhle nor Michael DeSario, the president of Windmill Village, a nonprofit organization that has developed low-income housing here, envision large numbers of school-age children living in the town’s proposed development, especially when compared to other nearby affordable-housing complexes.

According to Mr. DeSario, among four East Hampton Town affordable-housing developments, which range from 19 to 50 units — Whalebone Village Apartments, Avallone Apartments, Accabonac Apartments, and Springs Fireplace Apartments — there is, on average, one child for every three bedrooms. He estimated that about 30 children between the ages of 4 and 18 might call the new development home.

“Nobody really knows where these facts are coming from,” Mr. DeSario said, calling the figures provided by S.E.S. Study Team “outrageous.” 

Mr. Ruhle explained that in order to qualify for the proposed housing, the maximum income for a single person would be $36,800, with a two-person household capped at $42,050 and a four-person household at $42,550.

“One thing everyone agrees on is that we need more affordable housing,” Mr. DeSario said, noting that hundreds are on waiting lists for Whalebone and the other complexes, with young people showing particular demand for one-bedrooms. “Wherever we put it, some people are going to have a problem with it. I just hope it’s not the case that if you scream loud enough, you don’t have it in your backyard.”

Mr. Eagan expects to sit down with Larry Cantwell, the town supervisor, soon. “I’d like to start a dialogue with them and help them achieve their goal but without destroying our institution,” he said.

“The town board believes there’s a need for affordable housing and we’re pursuing that in a number of areas,” said Mr. Cantwell, who plans to tour the Wainscott School. “At the same time, I share some of the concern that the Wainscott School Board has. They’re a small school with a small school district, and to the extent that this has a significant impact on their school district and their taxes, I’m sensitive to that.”

Mr. Cantwell and several others see the proposed development as a multi-year endeavor. Mostly, he said he hopes to strike the right balance: “Can we come up with a housing proposal that will fulfill some of the needs that we have for affordable housing and at the same do that with the smallest impact for the school district?”

In general, Mr. Eagan said Wainscott residents have been feeling under attack — not only with the affordable-housing proposals but the construction of a Home Goods store on Montauk Highway.

“Incorporation is being bantered about,” Mr. Eagan said, which would allow Wainscott, much like Sagaponack, to control its own zoning, among other things, although it would not particularly affect the school district.

Citing 2010 Census data, Mr. Eagan said  Wainscott had 652 residents, a majority of whom are second-home owners. The district now enrolls 58 students. Of these, 21 attend kindergarten through the third grade at the Wainscott School. The district employs two full-time teachers and one full-time bilingual aide. Besides offering classes in music, art, gym, and technology each week, the school provides one desktop computer for every two children.

“It’s a magical, special place,” Mr. Eagan said. “We do things economically and we think very well. The school has been a source of pride to our community for a long, long time.”

Mr. Eagan also said he was hopeful a compromise could be reached. Otherwise, he said, “It will result in pitting community against community. No one wins that fight. Our smallness isn’t going to stop us. The impact of this needs to be felt townwide — just like the benefit.”