‘Yes’ Likely for Pool by Dunes

    A Two Mile Hollow rebuild on a beachfront property was on the docket again, with revised plans, at Friday’s East Hampton Village Zoning Board of Appeals meeting.

    Beautiful Joy L.L.C., which owns the property next to, and a little behind, the asphalt-covered village beach parking lot, had revised previous requests and moved the project back from the contour line of the dune ecosystem.

    Now, the only portion that would not meet the setback and would require a special permit is a portion of the swimming pool, which was moved to run parallel to the ocean and almost far enough from the dune line to meet code requirements.

    However, John Tarbet, an attorney for the neighbor to the west, argued that even though it was “a step in the right direction,” it still was not enough. “They’re still looking to build within the 25-foot setback of the dunes,” he said.

    “You are opposing a variance which would ask for a build within the 25-foot buffer line,” said Andrew Goldstein, the zoning chairman, “and you are representing a client who has done that already, and a little bit beyond. Are you aware of some facts that your client’s property has had a negative effect?”

    “Obviously, your client being the staunch environmentalist, if the experts come back and say that it does have a negative effect, will your client be willing to take the structure down?” Mr. Goldstein asked.

    “To my unexpert eyes,” added Frank Newbold, a board member, “the property in question is behind the neighbor and behind the parking lot.”

    “And this is not an area that at this point is inhabited by any wildlife,” Mr. Goldstein added. “It’s cleared.”

    Rob Herrmann from the environmental consulting firm En-Consultants in Southampton, hired by Beautiful Joy, ventured that “even under the broadest definition of the double dunes area, this latest pool now steps out of this area. It’s landward of the retaining wall, and even landward of the parking lot.”

    Lys Marigold, a board member, agreed. “The tendency is to be more vigilant with undisturbed areas,” she said. “But this is between a parking lot and an overdeveloped property. I’m somewhat satisfied with this application.”

    “You have rescued victory out of the jaws of defeat,” Mr. Goldstein told Eric Bergman, the attorney for the applicant. “You’ve won over the hard-to-sell on the board.”

    The hearing was adjourned until May 11 for more discussion.