Government Briefs 10.27.16
East Hampton Town
Amagansett: Parking and Park
The East Hampton Town Board is moving forward with plans to expand the parking lot behind Main Street in Amagansett and to designate an adjacent area for use as a passive park.
A half-acre lot owned by Herbert and Thomas Field will be purchased with town capital funds for $1.1 million, and two acres of a 2.7-acre parcel owned by Herbert Field will be bought for $1.8 million. Mr. Field, who has a house on the property, will retain the remainder of that lot. The money for that purchase will come primarily from the community preservation fund, as 70 percent of the parcel, which is agricultural land, will be preserved. The 30-percent portion that will become part of the parking lot will be purchased with capital funds.
At its meeting last Thursday, the board voted unanimously to issue a $390,000 bond for the parking lot construction, and a $220,000 bond that will be used for the park. Plans for the park have not yet been developed, but Councilman Peter Van Scoyoc said this week that playground equipment and benches would likely be installed.
To Oversee Green River Cemetery
East Hampton Town will take over the Green River Cemetery in Springs, a local graveyard that is the resting place for generations of Bonackers as well as numerous art world luminaries who lived nearby, including Willem de Kooning and Jackson Pollock.
The Accabonac Road cemetery has been owned and maintained by the Green River Cemetery Association, which, according to a resolution approved by the town board last week, “believes that a town takeover is the only reasonable course of action to preserve and protect the best interest of the cemetery and the families buried in the cemetery.”
Funds for perpetual care, maintenance, and other expenses will be handed over as well. The town expects upkeep to cost approximately $24,000 a year.
King’s Point Road Acquisition
With a vote last Thursday, the town board agreed to use the community preservation fund to buy a half-acre at 6 King’s Point Road in Springs from Terry Dobris, for $925,000.
Structures on the property will be removed by the landowner prior to the transfer.
Fencing Off the Airport
Also last Thursday, the board voted to issue a $1 million bond to have a fence installed around the perimeter of the East Hampton Airport, along with electronic gates.
The board also voted that night to hire Michael Baker International, an engineering consulting firm, to assist with the design of the fencing and gate, as well as obstruction lights, for $97,772.
The capital construction project will be paid for with revenue that comes into the airport.
Town Budget Hearing
A proposed $75 million East Hampton Town budget for 2017 will be the subject of a hearing before the East Hampton Town Board at Town Hall next Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
The proposal increases spending by 1.8 percent over this year. It would result in a tax rate increase of just over 1 percent for property owners in East Hampton Town; those within the incorporated villages of East Hampton and Sag Harbor would see a 3.9-percent decrease in taxes.
At those rates, taxpayers would be charged $29.70 per $100 of assessed value in the town, and $11.25 per $100 of assessed property value within the villages.
The budget includes salaries for additional police officers, to bring the Police Department up to full staffing, as well as for the hiring of additional lifeguards and beach attendants.
Following the hearing, the board is expected to vote on the budget at a Nov. 17 meeting.