Fined for Selling Summer Shares

Two people who rented houses in Montauk for the summer and then sold shares in them in violation of the East Hampton Town Code were slapped with substantial fines in zoning court last week.

Kimberly Giese of New York City, 46, was accused of selling three-day-weekend shares in a house at 16 Gates Avenue, through Craigslist and Airbnb. She was charged after a code enforcement officer posing as a prospective renter responded to the Craigslist ad in April, saying she was 35, worked in the financial industry, and was interested in several weekend shares.

Ms. Giese quoted her $1,300 for a private room or $660 in a shared bedroom. Describing herself and her two friends whose names were also on the lease, she wrote that “we are all between the ages of 33-45, live and work in New York City, and enjoy great weekends in Montauk at the beach, the restaurants, live music venues, etc. It is not a party house, we keep the maximum number of guests to 10 each week/weekend.”

Code enforcement also interviewed a man who said he and his friends had rented the entire house from one of the two friends, identified only as Tonya, for the Memorial Day weekend for $4,000.

Ms. Giese was originally charged with nine misdemeanors, including excessive turnover, selling shares in a house, and partial occupancy, but was allowed to plead to seven violations, and was fined $500 for each.

The homeowner, Tom Mahl, told investigators that he was unaware of what was going on. Michael Sendlenski, the town’s prosecutor, said that the homeowner was generally not charged in these cases the first time around, but would come under greater scrutiny if it happened again.

Also in court last week was Anthony Pisciotto Jr., of Lake Grove, one of two renters of a house at 37 Kettle Hole Road. He faced 24 charges, many of them misdemeanors, but was allowed to plead to eight violations. He too was fined $500 for each.

Mr. Pisciotto, a co-signer of the lease with Christian Arcello of West Islip, created several new rooms in the house they rented from Drs. Marie Savard and Bradley W. Fenton, according to code enforcement. Their activities came to light on July 25 when a Dix Hills man being arraigned in East Hampton Town Justice Court for drunken driving was asked what he did for a living. He told Justice Steven Tekulsky he was “a share-house manager in Montauk,” giving the Kettle Hole Road address.

Finally, Duke Stevens of Calverton, 53, pleaded guilty as charged to two misdemeanors involving illegal signs at 618 Montauk Highway, Amagansett, between T & B Auto Service and Vicki’s Veggies. The signs, facing the highway, advertised a “Spiritual Psychic Life Coach Advisor” and “Tarot Card Reading by Lauren,” among other things. After admitting to a third misdemeanor, converting office space into a bedroom, he was fined a total of $2,500.