Paddleboard Operator Can Return for Time Being

Paddle Diva, which has been under fire from the East Hampton Town Zoning Board of Appeals for giving paddleboard lessons in Three Mile Harbor, can continue to operate this season, according to an agreement announced Tuesday between the town and the company, whose owner, Gina Bradley, had sued to stay in business.

Z.B.A. members voted 4-0 in October to uphold a determination by the town’s head building inspector, Ann Glennon, that Paddle Diva, which operates from the Shagwong Marina, had expanded the marina’s use beyond what is allowed under the town code by running classes and renting and selling boards and other items there.

The zoning board had wrestled with several issues during its deliberations, among them whether a paddleboard falls under the definition of a boat. Having concluded that paddleboards are indeed a form of boat, members then had to deal with the town code, which prohibits out-of-water storage of boats at recreational marinas, such as Shagwong. (Out-of-water storage is restricted to sites classified as boatyards.) Ms. Bradley has been running her business at the Shagwong Marina since 2012.

On Jan. 31, Dianne K. Le Verrier of the East Hampton law firm Jordan and Le Verrier asked State Supreme Court Justice Arthur G. Pitts to prevent the town from enforcing the zoning board’s decision until Ms. Bradley’s suit was adjudicated. Pending his decision, which is said to be months off, the two sides agreed that the lessons, rentals, and sales of paddleboards could continue.  “I’m thrilled I can be in business this year, to be an active member of the community,” Ms. Bradley said yesterday.