Tough Talk, More Action As Party Rages On

In response to the recent uprising by residents against what they describe as an unruly and rowdy environment this summer in Montauk, East Hampton Town officials are taking a multi-pronged approach to deal with issues of crowding, illegal nightclubs, traffic, drunken behavior, and more. A crowd of some 300 jammed the Montauk Firehouse on July 14 to demand a strong response.

There is no silver bullet, officials have said, but actions have been taken in recent weeks to chip away at the multi-headed hydra of problems.

To address congestion along Edgemere Street, where Surf Lodge patrons park up and down the west side of the road, blocking the road shoulder and walking in the roadway to get to the club, the board is moving to establish a no-parking zone from just north of the club south to where Edgemere intersects with Elwell Street. Parking is already banned on the east side of Edgemere.

While Edgemere is a county road, necessitating the county’s permission on parking regulations, the town has reportedly been given the okay to move forward, with an indication that the county will not object to the new rule.

A public hearing on the restriction has been scheduled for Aug. 6 at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall.

Though the parking rule will help, East Hampton Town Police Chief Mike Sarlo said at the board session on Tuesday, part of the problem is that the Surf Lodge security team allows only guests of the motel there to pull into the club’s parking lot. Taxis are made to stop outside, and they also block the road. The chief said that he had discussed the issue with the Surf Lodge, and that “we try to address that with enforcement efforts when we can.”

Conduct on the beach is also under the town board microscope. At another Aug. 6 hearing, board members will hear from the public on a proposed law requiring containers for beach fires, and discussion of an alcohol ban on Montauk beaches will begin with Councilman Peter Van Scoyoc raising the topic at a Montauk Citizens Advisory Committee meeting. It will also be on the agenda for the next town board meeting in Montauk, on Aug. 11.

“I think some of the concerns that have been raised relate to some of the drinking at night in the downtown area,” Mr. Cantwell said Tuesday. The board last year enacted a ban on drinking at Indian Wells Beach in Amagansett during certain days and hours to tamp down a party scene there.

Overcrowding and rowdy, drunken behavior at Montauk nightspots have also become a concern.

To press business owners to keep track of the number of patrons and not exceed their limits, the board has proposed a law that would require bars and nightclubs that have a maximum occupancy of more than 100 people to use mechanical or electronic counting devices to keep a running tab.

The law would, in addition, deem a “stationary line of people in front of any required or designated exit” an illegal obstruction.

A hearing on the law will be held at Town Hall at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 20.

The town is also vowing to get tough on noisy bars that violate town ordinances.

Mr. Cantwell said he and Chief Sarlo had met with Montauk business owners to seek “the highest level of cooperation we can get. But,” he said, “I also want to call out those that are not cooperating. It’s very disappointing to me. We will try to gain that cooperation, or otherwise enforce the laws that are at our disposal.”

Actions are being taken against the Harbor Bar and Lounge for operating as a nightclub without permits, and Ciao, for noise violations. They are reported on separately in today’s paper.

A law banning the addition of new bars or restaurants at motels in residential zones, and requiring a permit and compliance with a new set of standards for those where they would be allowed, was passed by the board on July 2. 

The establishment of a rental registry was taken up once again by the board at its work session on Tuesday. Two information sessions last year drew numerous comments — mostly criticism — from the public.

Michael Sendlenski, a town attorney, said that in Southampton, where he had worked, a registry had been an “invaluable tool” to help identify and prosecute illegal share houses and overcrowded dwellings.

An East Hampton registry law, he said, could also be drafted to make it clear that group dormitory living situations, such as those used by the Ross School for its students, were not considered the “functional equivalent of a family” and allowed. Board members reviewed details on Tuesday of the proposed registry law, for which a public hearing would be held before possible adoption.

Town attorneys are also working to clarify the town code barring bedrooms in basements.

Also on Tuesday, the board had John Jilnicki, a town attorney, summarize revised guidelines regarding public assemblies on commercial properties.

Except for activities for which the premises have town planning board approval, with occupancy limits set, commercial gatherings — concerts or other entertainment events for which tickets are sold, activities that require off-site parking or a tent, and sales of merchandise or food and drink, if outside of the site’s approved use — are not permitted without a specific town permit. Events sponsored by charitable organizations that benefit East Hampton residents are exempted.

The law was revised last year “to tighten up the use of commercial premises for multiple uses that we’ve seen the last few years,” Mr. Jilnicki said.

Councilman Van Scoyoc, the board’s Montauk liaison, reported on Tuesday that an additional garbage collection crew has been added on weekends, and the timing of pickups adjusted, he said, “to more directly correlate with when people are coming off the beach.” A separate crew, he said, has been assigned to make a continual loop around Montauk to pick up garbage at various road ends and at downtown spots.

Three portable toilets have been placed at the beach parking lot near the former East Deck motel in Montauk, Mr. Van Scoyoc said, and another three at the “dirt lot” parking area east of there and at the Ditch Plain Beach.

“I feel that we’ve been making steady progress on a number of issues, but this issue has boiled over,” Supervisor Cantwell said Monday.

“One act is not going to solve all problems. If you want to see a meaningful difference, there are a lot of things we’re going to have to do.”

According to statistics released by Chief Sarlo, on Friday and Saturday last weekend, police and Marine Patrol officers wrote 85 town code summonses, 25 tickets for vehicle and traffic law violations, and 36 parking tickets. Seven arrests were made, including three for driving while intoxicated and two for possession of a controlled substance.

Four businesses were cited for noise violations, he said, and one was issued a ticket for hosting an event on the beach without a town permit.