Success Celebrated, But Challenges Ahead

Looking back at the year just ended provides insight into what might be called the to-do list for local officials, as well as an indication of successes worth celebrating.

East Hampton Town government has in just 12 months experienced a dramatic turnaround. The accomplishments are both procedural, such as ending the anti-open government practice of last-minute “walk-on” resolutions by the town board, and practical, such as the closing of the money-losing Springs-Fireplace Road sewage processing site. Other big steps have been the beginning of buyouts of flood-prone and watershed properties, halting a massive luxury condominium project planned for Amagansett, passing new limits on commercial gatherings, and continuing sound budget practices.

There is much more to be done, however. On the 2015 agenda are such high-priority concerns as sea level rise, groundwater protection, affordable housing, airport noise, and mental health services for the young and the poor. Nuts-and-bolts needs include better regulation of taxis and so-called ride-sharing services (such as Uber and Lyft), road repairs and bike lanes, closing a deal to preserve the East Deck property in Montauk, resolving the PSEG utility pole debacle, assuring access to farmland for farmers, and dealing with deer, “formula” stores, and the commercial use of residential properties.

Taking the bully pulpit, the town board needs to do more to speed school consolidation, restore the use of the state-mandated environmental quality review procedure known as SEQRA, and broker a deal among the various agencies for a better first-responder system for emergency medical calls.

The town board also needs to do more where there has been little progress. This includes cultivating better diversity among the members of appointed boards, clamping down on illegal rentals and excessive vacation-house turnover, saving Wainscott from its current and too-permissive highway business zoning, and doing something about the appalling charcoal messes left even deep into the fall months by beach bonfires.

The East Hampton Town Board has much to be proud of in 2014. We raise a toast to its members, and wish them continued energy and the best of luck in the year to come.