In Montauk, A Contentious Canopy
Nancy Keeshan, a member of the East Hampton Town Planning Board, has been fighting for three years to prevent the placement of a canopy over a Montauk gasoline station, and on May 6, during a contentious site plan review meeting at Town Hall, three other planning board members agreed with her.
All three had previously expressed unhappiness with the plan, but tentatively, uncertain whether their board had legal standing to prohibit the structure. The town attorney’s office had warned that aesthetics alone might not be sufficient grounds to deny it.
This time, however, John Jilnicki, the board’s lawyer, seemed to give the board “wiggle room,” as Reed Jones, its chairman, put it. He cited one passage in the town code that allows denial to protect scenic vistas, and another that empowers the board to consider “protection of the character of neighborhoods.”
The gas station in question is the westernmost of the three in the hamlet, now a Citgo station. Its owners were represented by a Montauk lawyer, Richard A. Hammer of Biondo and Hammer, who has had some preliminary skirmishing with Ms. Keeshan as the site plan has evolved, but May 6 became the main event.
The plans for the station, called Empire in the application, call for an additional pump to be added to the two already on site, as well as the canopy.
Kathleen Cunningham and Job Potter, who opposed the canopy, were not on the planning board when it first began considering the application, a point that pained Mr. Hammer. He complained that when Pat Schutte was on the board, he had the four votes needed to approve.
There were heated words between supporters and opponents after Mr. Jilnicki offered his citations from the code. “A scenic vista is compromised by a giant metal canopy,” said Ms. Keeshan, whose real estate office is in downtown Montauk. “I have never heard of a scenic vista in connection with downtown Montauk,” Mr. Hammer responded. “The scenic vista we are talking about is probably — on one side is John’s Drive-in.”
Mr. Hammer locked horns with Mr. Jones as well, complaining that the board had dragged out the process. Mr. Jones challenged him on the point. “You implied that this board has been jacking you around. Are you implying that the board voted for this and now has changed its mind?” he asked.
“We always come back to the same issue: Can we deny this canopy?” Mr. Hammer said.
“You haven’t answered my questions. Did this board at one time approve this canopy?” Mr. Jones responded.
Mr. Hammer then returned to the scenic vista issue. “Sending me to the Z.B.A., I think that is all part of an affirmation that this structure is on the path to approval,” he concluded. (The Town Zoning Board of Appeals needed to approve the project because of its proximity to wetlands, and did give it the needed variances.)
In the end, while board members opposed the application 4-3, they could not take a vote to deny it, since, as Mr. Jilnicki pointed out, no public hearing has been held. Mr. Hammer said he looked forward to a hearing. “That is what this is about: building a record for litigation.”
“We’ll see you at the hearing,” Ms. Keeshan retorted.
In fact, Mr. Hammer and the board saw each other much sooner. The Surf Lodge site plan was next on the agenda, and Mr. Hammer represents its owners.
The Surf Lodge, which sits on Fort Pond at the corners of Edgemere Street and Industrial Road in Montauk, is seeking site plan approval for an underground propane tank. Before approval can be granted, however, the establishment must get the okay for everything on the property that is not mentioned in its current certificate of occupancy, including such structures as decking or Dumpsters.
The planning board applauded many of the changes put in place since new owners took over in 2013, such as replacing the asphalt driveway with a driveway of crushed shells. But the Surf Lodge may have to change its popular outdoor sand section, with day beds, a bar, and a barbecue. It is at the corner of the property, on the very edge of Fort Pond, and both board members and town planners see this as an expansion of use.
“It’s like putting a couch out and not expecting people to sit on it. You’re going to get more people,” Ms. Keeshan said.
The Surf Lodge will have to obtain a series of variances and permits from the Z.B.A. The planning board will send its comments to that board.