Three changes to the operation of its beaches were on the East Hampton Village Board’s agenda Friday, all of them with an eye to maximizing income from the village’s top resource.
First, was a proposal to extend the back end of the beach season from Sept. 15 to Columbus Day.
“The last two seasons, we’ve extended the season,” said Mayor Jerry Larsen. “This will just formalize it.”
Chris Minardi, the deputy mayor, explained that formally extending the season would help both David Collins, superintendent of public works, and Drew Smith, head lifeguard.
“The last two years, when we keep the beaches and bathrooms open, they’re being used a lot,” said Mr. Minardi. “Drew has to be able to schedule guards. We’ve saved a lot of lives during those times.”
Carrie Doyle, a board member and dog walker, wondered how an extended season would affect dog access. Dogs are now prohibited on the beaches from May 15 until Sept. 15, except for early mornings and evenings. Would they now be prohibited until Columbus Day?
“This board has no jurisdiction over changing the dog access laws,” said Mayor Larsen. “It would have to go to the town trustees.” In other words, dogs will continue to be allowed on beaches after Sept. 15, as will trucks.
Mr. Minardi, a strong advocate for the sands, questioned whether dog and truck traffic on a busy beach day in late September would be safe or desirable. Nonetheless, the board unanimously supported extending the season.
Next, daring themselves to fix something that wasn’t necessarily broken, the board canceled monthly beach passes.
Last summer the village sold 500 passes, at $300 apiece, each month in June, July, and August, netting it $450,000.
“We sold out,” said Mr. Minardi. “To make it easier, in 2023 we’ll split the summer into two seasons, not three.” The first half, he said, will be from May 15 until July 31; the second half from Aug. 1 until Columbus Day.
The new “half-season” passes will go on sale May 1 at 9 a.m. and cost $500. The village plans to sell 1,500, split between the two seasons. Should they sell out, the village will net $1.125 million, $675,000 more than in 2022.
Again, it was Ms. Doyle who had a question, this time about parking, andwhether beach parking lots would be restricted to beach-pass holders until Columbus Day. “Is there such high usage that we need to not let people park there after Sept. 15?” she wondered.
“On busy weekends in September, yeah,” said Mr. Minardi.
“I walk my dogs at Georgica Beach,” Ms. Doyle continued. “What I do like is, that all the contractors — I live on Georgica Road, there’s so much construction there — that starting on Sept. 15, all those trucks go to park at Georgica Beach. I like that because it gets them off the streets near me. I’d hate for very few people to use the beach and not allow the contractors to park there.”
“If we’re extending the season, there will be more usage,” said Sandra Melendez. “I think regulating parking would be a good thing.”
“I don’t think our beach parking lots are parking lots for contractors,” said Mr. Minardi. “We’re putting a lot of effort into making our beaches clean, accessible, guarded, and safe — it’s nice to have an open parking lot.”
“What if we just required parking passes on the weekends,” suggested Mayor Larsen, seeking a compromise. “Contractors probably don’t work on the weekends.” The village would allow them to use the lots during the week, he said.
“What if someone has a parking pass during the week and you can’t park there?” asked Ms. Melendez.
“What if there’s contractors that aren’t so nice?” said Mr. Minardi. “Our beaches are parks, and they’re supposed to be family-friendly. Contractor trucks is not what I want at our beaches.”
“If we find it’s a problem during the week, then next season we’ll restrict it during the week too,” said Mayor Larsen.
Finally, in an effort to help people market their homes for renting, the board will now give residents the option to transfer their beach passes.
The village uses license-plate readers to enforce beach parking. If a resident rents their house, they will now be able to put a hold on their license plate for the time they are out of town, which will open up another spot for the village to sell a pass.
“If a half-season pass was available for $500, the renter could buy that,” the mayor explained. “If that’s not available, they’d have the opportunity to buy a full-season pass for $750. That would take the place of the one that was put on hold by the resident. As soon as the rental was over and the village resident wanted their pass activated again, we’d take off the hold.”
“Technology has come such a long way that it allows us to open up more benefits for our village residents,” he added.
And of course, the added sales to seasonal renters will further pad the village’s coffers.
