In East Hampton Village, the appearance of the big, central parking lot has improved since a hedge and chain-link fence along its west side were removed. The Robert G. Reutershan Memorial Parking Lot was named to honor the East Hampton civic leader struck and killed by a speeding car in May 1964 as he was crossing Amagansett Main Street. Mr. Reutershan, a village trustee and just 47 at the time of his death, had long worked on the creation of the parking area. At the time of its dedication to him, the view from the lot was expansive, reaching far to the rear of the adjacent Herrick Park; that view has been restored since the fence and a monolithic tennis-practice backstop came down. The visually pleasant change is not without a significant public safety risk, however.
We hope that it is an oversight that now all that separates children in East Hampton Middle School physical education classes and other users of the park from being stuck by an out of control vehicle is a low curb. The risk should have been obvious when the village board ordered the fence and hedge removed. Not all that long ago and less than a half-mile away, a driver stepped on the accelerator suddenly and drove some 30 feet inside the food market on Race Lane — serious injuries were avoided only by a matter of inches.
Parking bollards are part of the basic standards for public and private lots alike and intended to keep vehicles and pedestrians apart — and they can serve this function without harming the views. With so many of us in a rush, as well as a constant stream of visitors, the village’s taking a “safety last” approach is grossly irresponsible, if not a sign of incompetence. It would be an irony of the most bitter sort if someone were harmed here now in a place named for a village leader who himself was killed by a car. Common sense tells us that effective barriers, even temporary ones, must be put in place immediately.