Sidewalk Seats for Takeout?

After designing a pilot program approved by the East Hampton Town Board through which restaurants in downtown Montauk can apply for approval to offer sidewalk dining within a set of guidelines, the town’s business advisory committee has turned its sights to the practice by some takeout food shops of offering a handful of seats for customers.

Under the town’s zoning code, takeout shops are classified as retail uses, which don’t allow for seating for diners, but Suffolk County Department of Health Services regulations allow up to 16 seats. The committee is discussing revisions to town law that would allow seating and is expected to make a recommendation on the matter to the town board.

The committee is also examining questions raised about having a paddleboard business based at a marina, according to Councilwoman Sylvia Overby, the committee’s liaison, and will offer comments on that to the town board as well.

In other news, the board will accept written comments through next Thursday on a proposal to install stop signs and create a four-way stop at the intersection of Wainscott Hollow Road, Five Rod Highway, and Main Street in Wainscott. The proposal was the subject of a hearing on March 16 that was held open until next week.