By Kathryn G. Menu

In addition to voting for school board candidates, residents in Bridgehampton and Sag Harbor will also be asked to approve spending plans for the 2013-2014 school year.

In Bridgehampton, voters will weigh in on an $11.2 million budget, a 4.83 percent increase from this year’s $10.7 million spending plan. The 2013-2014 budget falls within the state mandated two percent property tax levy cap.

The projected tax levy will increase by 4.4 percent over last year’s levy, according to a budget presentation made this week by the district’s superintendent Dr. Lois Favre. The tax levy increases from $9.4 million to $9.8 million, and the tax rate is estimated to be $0.2 per $1,000 of assessed value with the owner of a home valued at $2 million seeing their school property taxes increase by $46.59 for 2013-2014 if the budget passes next Tuesday.

Bridgehampton voters will also consider two propositions in addition to the 2013-2014 budget.

Proposition two will authorize the district to spend $160,000 for the Bridgehampton Child Care & Recreational Center.

Proposition 3 will allow the district to change the maximum mileage for students in grades nine through 12 attending private schools outside the district from the state mandated distance of 15 miles from their home to the school they attend to 25 miles. The cost for the 2013-14 school year is not to exceed $60,525.

This would enable students to be transported to Bishop McGann-Mercy High School in Riverhead, 21 miles away or six miles over the state’s mandated transportation boundary of 15 miles. Earlier this year a group of parents, hoping to have the district fund the cost of transportation for their children to attend the East End’s only Catholic high school submitted a petition to the board of education to place this referendum on the ballot.

By Amanda Wyatt

As East Hampton Airport seeks to install a permanent, seasonal air traffic control tower, a number of East End residents are once again bringing the issue of airport noise to the forefront of that discussion.

Last Wednesday, roughly 60 residents turned out for a public hearing at the airport on an environmental assessment of the proposed control tower. And although the assessment does not cite noise as an area of concern, it was a high priority for many of the attendees.

According to Peter Byrne, senior airport planner at the Hauppauge-based firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin Inc., the hearing was part of a formal process under the National Environmental Policy Act.

Byrne gave the audience an overview of the 26-feet, four-inch tower, which would be functional for roughly 16 hours a day between May and September.

From an enclosed glass cab, air traffic controllers would use a high frequency radio to communicate with aircraft owners. The tower would also come equipped with “a steady burning, red obstruction light,” he added.

Nonetheless, the majority of commenters at the hearing aired their grievances not about the tower, but about noise pollution generated by the airport in general.

Airport noise has been an issue debated in East Hampton and beyond for years, but became increasingly controversial last summer, when one of two recommended helicopter flight paths was eliminated, rerouting all helicopter traffic over Jessup’s Neck in Noyac.

Residents of the hamlet, along with North Sea, Sag Harbor and other surrounding areas, have reported a major increase in noise as a result. For the last year, those residents have been joined by government officials like Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst, Congressman Tim Bishop, Senator Charles Schumer, New York State Senator Ken LaValle and Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr., among others including members of civic organizations, in calling for a comprehensive strategy to address helicopter noise stemming from the airport before another busy summer season begins.

At the same time, the environmental assessment discussed at last Wednesday’s meeting does not include Noyac or the surrounding area as being one impacted by the control tower. Bridget Fleming, a Southampton Town councilwoman who serves as the liaison to Noyac, asked that the area of study be expanded to include these locales.

The study “does not note anything about the concomitant increase in noise over Noyac, North Sea and the Sag Harbor area,” said Fleming. “The presence of the tower has a very real impact on those areas and the areas that are outside the study area.”

For Kathleen Cunningham, chair of the Quiet Skies Coalition, the control tower “offers safety, but it also increases capacity.”

Patricia Currie, a fellow Quiet Skies member, said, “Increased capacity is noise.”

Theresa Caskey, who traveled from Mattituck on the North Fork to give her testimony, said planes on their way to East Hampton were waking her up early in the morning.

Tom MacNiven of Wainscott added that holding a hearing mid-week was a problem for many second homeowners in the area and that it had not been properly publicized.

For some residents, the hearing was a chance for some show-and-tell.

William Reilly of Sag Harbor held up a stack of notebooks that recorded the “hundreds” of times he had called to complain about noise over the years.

And Elena Loreto, president of the Noyac Civic Council, played a tape of helicopter noise she had recorded at her house last weekend.

“Welcome to my backyard,” she shouted over the sound of choppers. “This is my Saturday and Sunday.”

Noyac resident Gene Polito, on the other hand, questioned the accuracy of the environmental report.

“Apparently, the report you put together is flawed from top to bottom,” he said, adding “noise pollution is environmental. Air pollution is environmental. Everything related to the airport is environmental.”

Jeff Bragman of East Hampton, who called the control tower “a sales pitch by the airport lobby,” lambasted the fact that the hearing was moderated by “a couple of suits from Hauppauge.”

“This hearing is everything about why we need local control instead of FAA control,” he said, eliciting applause from the audience.

But Gerard Boles of East Hampton, an aircraft owner and president of the East Hampton Aviation Association, offered a different perspective.

“With the amount of traffic that we have in the summertime, the control tower proves to be beneficial,” he said.

While he said it was “not a panacea, it is not the solution,” he believed that “all in all, a control tower is positive, even for noise abatement.”

A draft of the environmental assessment is available on the Town of East Hampton’s website, www.town.east-hampton.ny.us. The airport will continue to accept written comments on the subject until 5 p.m. on May 13.

By Kathryn G. Menu

Laura Nolan has resigned as mayor of North Haven Village, according to an announcement made by deputy mayor Jim Smyth during a village board meeting on Tuesday evening.

Smyth said Nolan, 55, resigned from the position citing personal reasons, effective immediately.

Nolan, who was elected mayor in 2002 and has been elected for five terms since, did not return calls for comment.

Nolan has one year left in her two-year term as village mayor. According to village clerk Georgia Welch, it is too late to add a mayoral race on the ballot for the June 18 village elections.

On Tuesday, Smyth — who will serve as acting mayor until the new fiscal year starts in July — said he would not seek another term on the village board. This year there are two village board seats up for election.

Smyth, 63, has served as a member of that board since 2002, when he was appointed to fill the remainder of Nolan’s term after she was elected mayor. Prior to that he was a member of the North Haven planning board from 1994 to 2002.

“I have been doing this for 25 years, my wife retired at the first of the year and we have some things we want to do,” said Smyth on Tuesday.

Smyth, who has owned The Corner Bar in Sag Harbor for 35 years, said Nolan’s decision to resign from her post has not altered his decision, although he plans to remain an active member of community.

According to Welch, architect Jim Laspesa — chairman of the North Haven planning board — has expressed an interest in running although no nominating petitions had been turned in as of press time.

On Tuesday, incumbent trustee Jeff Sander, 71, a former business executive who has served on the board since 2007 said he would “probably” seek another term with the board.

Rather than hold a special election for mayor, Sander said the village board would likely appoint someone to fill the remainder of Nolan’s term as mayor.

In both North Haven and Sag Harbor Village, nominating petitions to seek village office are due next Tuesday, May 14.

In Sag Harbor Village, four candidates have announced they will seek the mayor’s seat in this June’s election. Incumbent mayor Brian Gilbride, harbor committee chairman Bruce Tait, former mayor Pierce Hance and former Sag Harbor village clerk Sandra Schroeder have all announced their intention to run.

In the trustees race, incumbent Ed Gregory has announced he will seek another term. Former mayor and trustee Ed Deyermond has also thrown his hat into the trustees race, as has former board member Bruce Stafford and La Superica owner Ken O’Donnell.

On Tuesday, the Suffolk County Legislature unanimously approved legislation providing a minimum of $1.1 million and as much as $2.1 million to expand the county’s Sunday bus service — a move Suffolk County Legislator Jay Schneiderman said would provide environmental and economic benefits moving into the summer season.

“We are building upon the successful pilot program for Sunday bus service we launched two years ago on the East End,” said Schneiderman. “Sunday is a busy day for retail and service-oriented businesses. Employees need to get to work and employers need a workforce they can depend on.”

“This resolution is a step forward to expand bus service while cutting our deficit,” County Executive Steve Bellone said. “Expanding bus service helps take cars off the road and provides opportunity and access for thousands of Suffolk County residents. I commend Legislator Schneiderman for his continued leadership to make Sunday bus service a reality in Suffolk County and working alongside me to expand service and provide deficit relief. I also want to thank our state delegation for their hard work to get Suffolk County’s transit aid increased by approximately $2 million.”

“Many businesses on the East End, including in my North Fork legislative district, rely on public transportation to get workers to their jobs, especially during the summer season, and I strongly support Legislator Schneiderman’s initiative to expand Sunday service,” said Legislator Al Krupski. “It’s an important economic boost for my district and will also help workers get to the jobs they need to be self-sufficient. And it’s a win for all Suffolk County taxpayers by helping cut our general fund deficit.”

“Today’s vote is an important first step towards creating the seven-day-a-week bus service that Suffolk County deserves,” said Ryan Lynch, associate director of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign. “This investment in Sunday and evening bus service is a down payment that will help riders and local businesses immediately, while also laying the groundwork for additional service expansions in the future.”

A successful pilot program for Sunday and holiday bus service was in effect for two summer seasons, Memorial Day to Columbus Day, on two eastern Suffolk routes — the S92 and 10C lines — subsidized in part by a 25 cent higher main fare on those riders. New York State recently increased its State Transit Operating Assistance (“STOA”) for Suffolk Transit by approximately $2,100,000 above the level anticipated in the Suffolk County 2013 budget, giving the county the opportunity to establish Sunday bus service year-round on limited routes.

“Recognizing the depth of the county’s fiscal problems, I agreed to allow half of this additional state funding to be used to close our county general fund deficit,” said Schneiderman. “I am hopeful that a federal grant for $1,000,000 will make up the difference and we should learn about our grant success in June.”

Schneiderman’s legislation would use $1.1 million of the increased funding provided by New York State to expand bus services in Suffolk County in the evenings and on Sundays. It would also direct the county Department of Public Works to apply for federal matching grant funding through the Job Access Reverse Commute (“JARC”) program, with the goal of achieving a total of $2 million in new funding for expanded Sunday and evening bus service.

Under the legislation, the Department of Public Works would develop a plan, within 30 days of the resolution, to expand the county’s bus service in the evening hours and on Sundays to the fullest extent possible within the limits of the additional state funding. The plan for expanded bus service would be continued as a pilot program for one year. DPW would report on the success of the pilot program to the County Legislature’s Public Works Committee no later than 270 days after the pilot program begins and make recommendations as to the feasibility of continuing the program beyond the one-year pilot period.

On May 21, voters in Bridgehampton will decide whether or not to extend the district’s transportation policy to provide busing to students attending schools within 25 miles of the school district. In essence, this would allow transportation of students to Bishop McGann-Mercy High School in Riverhead, the only Catholic high school on the East End.

Under state law, school districts are only required to provide transportation to non-public schools within 15 miles of the district. In order to change that policy, residents — not administration or school boards — must weigh in via a referendum vote on the issue.

And in 2010, the voters of the Sag Harbor School District did just that.

In 1976, Sag Harbor residents authorized an expansion of the school’s transportation policy, allowing students to be transported within a 30-mile radius of the Pierson campus. In 2010, with no students then attending non-public schools between 15 and 30 miles of the district, then superintendent Dr. John Gratto suggested the board roll back its transportation policy to the state mandated 15-mile limit. This was done in an effort to save taxpayers as much as $25,000 annually should students once again begin attending private schools within the 15 to 30 mile radius.

Voters agreed.

However, according to current school district administrator John O’Keefe, during the 2011-2012 school year Dr. Gratto agreed to provide students wanting to attend McGann-Mercy with transportation to the school on a bus the district was already sending west to Eastern Suffolk BOCES.

O’Keefe noted the decision did not cost district taxpayers any money as the BOCES bus is provided through the district’s own busing system and is not contracted through a private busing service, which can often charge per student.

Three students from the Sag Harbor School District have been using this bus to get to McGann-Mercy.

O’Keefe said this week that after referring the matter to school district attorney, Tom Volz, it appears as of next year the district will no longer provide this transportation option in order to conform with its existing policy.

If the school district decides to pursue providing busing to non-public schools beyond the 15-mile limitation, O’Keefe said it would have to be approved by district residents in a referendum vote.

“This is not set in stone yet,” said O’Keefe, noting Volz was still researching the case law on allowing students — at no cost to the district — to use the BOCES bus to attend a non-public school. “But we do not think we will be able to allow it for next year.”

On Thursday, May 16 at 7 p.m. the East Hampton Town Board will host a public hearing on raising landing fees at the East Hampton Airport.

Last week, airport manager Jim Brundige presented a plan to raise landing fees beginning this season. Under his plan, landing fees for single engine aircraft would be raised from $7 to $10 while some helicopters would see an increase in fees from $350 to $500.

Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr. announced he helped pass legislation that would strengthen the state’s electoral process by instituting early voting in all general, primary and special elections in New York.

“Voting is a fundamental right in our democracy, and we have to find ways to get more people involved in the process,” Assemblyman Thiele said. “Unfortunately, less than 46 percent of New York voters cast their vote on Election Day 2012. The Assembly’s legislation would provide voters with more opportunities to cast their ballots. Increasing voter participation is extremely important to me because it will make our democracy more representative.”

Under the bill, early voting would begin on the third Thursday prior to a general election and go right up until the Thursday before Election Day, providing voters with a two week time frame to cast ballots. In the case of a primary or special election, early voting would run from the second Thursday before regular voting until the Thursday prior to the actual election date, giving voters up to a week of early voting. Early voting polls would be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. each weekday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.

Local boards of elections would designate at least five early voting sites in each county. The local board of elections would automatically be designated as a polling place in each county. Boards of elections would also be allowed to staff early voting sites with appointed inspectors or their own employees. Early votes would be secured throughout the early voting period and the results would not be released prior to the close of polls on Election Day. In addition, the names of each early voter would be recorded to ensure that early voters are properly removed from Election Day poll books.

“This early voting reform would give disabled voters and those who work non-traditional hours more flexibility to cast their votes well ahead of

Election Day,” Thiele said, “it would also create shorter lines at the polls and give local boards of elections enough time to ensure that no one votes twice in the same election.”

If made law, New York would join 32 other states and the District of Columbia in permitting an alternative to in-person voting on Election Day, Thiele noted.

The Wikun (Shinnecock for “good”) Village, the Shinnecock Museum’s outdoor living history exhibit hosts a ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday, May 9 from 11 a.m. to noon, with a guided tour of the site planned beginning at 11:30 a.m.

The re-created late 17th century, early 18th century Shinnecock/Eastern Woodlands Village will officially open Saturday, May 25, although a preview weekend for the community will be held May 15 through May 20.

Wikun Village, located at 100 Montauk Highway in Southampton, is one of handful of premier Native American living culture sites in the eastern United States and the only one of its kind on Long Island.

On May 24 and 25, the not for profit organization, Jordan’s Initiative, along with Hope For The Warriors will host members of the 3rd Battalion 25th Marines in Sag Harbor.

The battalion suffered 48 casualties in Iraq — 46 Marines and two Navy Corpsmen — giving them the unwanted distinction of being the battalion with one of the highest casualty rates of the war. On Saturday the May 25, they will be running from Montauk to Ground Zero in Manhattan to pay tribute to their fallen comrades and to honor the sacrifice of Sag Harbor’s own Jordan C. Haerter and Joe Theinert of Shelter Island, who were both killed in overseas combat. The battalion will also be running in honor of the first responders lost on September 11, 2001.
The route will take the battalion from Montauk through Sag Harbor, over the LCpl Jordan Haerter Veterans’ Memorial Bridge, down Main Street and on to Ground Zero in New York City. The run will begin in Montauk at 7 a.m. on Saturday and will end 26 hours later at Ground Zero.

In order to honor the runners and pay tribute to military heroes on Memorial Day, Jordan’s Initiative — created in honor of his son by Christian Haerter — would like to have 48 military veterans hold flags along the bridge while the Marines run by. The 48 flags will represent the 48 souls lost by the members of the battalion.

Haerter asks any veterans interested in participating to contact him at 725-2489. The not-for-profit will provide the flags, which will then be donated to the Village of Sag Harbor to fly on Main Street for years to come.

By Kathryn G. Menu

The Independence Party has tapped East Hampton Village Administrator Larry Cantwell as its candidate for East Hampton Town Supervisor this fall.

Two weeks ago, Cantwell announced he would seek both the Independence and Democratic parties endorsement to seek the top seat on the East Hampton Town Board in elections this fall.

According to Independence Party chairwoman Elaine Jones — who made the endorsement announcement on Monday afternoon after screening candidates last Tuesday — “experience was clearly the most impressive quality among candidates this year.”

“Larry Cantwell received the nod for the Supervisor spot,” said Jones and vice chairwoman Pat Mansir in a press release issued late Monday. “He carries with him the peaceful demeanor needed to bring consensus and unified forward-thinking among people. And his more than 30 years in public service is a testament to the success of his approach.”

Cantwell screened with the Independence Party along with Zachary Cohen, who was the Democratic candidate in 2011, narrowly losing to incumbent Republican Supervisor Bill Wilkinson. Wilkinson has chosen not to seek another term, and Nancy Keeshan, the town’s planning board vice chairman, once rumored to be the front runner for the Republican nomination, has withdrawn her name from contention.

“I am proud to have their nomination,” said Cantwell on Tuesday afternoon.

Republican Committee chairman Kurt Kappel has maintained his desire the party run its own candidate. When asked about the potential for a three party endorsement for supervisor, Cantwell said his focus was now on securing the East Hampton Democratic Committee’s endorsement.

That committee is expected to host its convention on May 15.

“My approach is one step at a time,” said Cantwell. “I am very pleased to have the Independence Party nomination because I look forward to being a consensus builder and leader in East Hampton. I think the Independence Party has shown a willingness to reach across party lines. Over the years, especially recently, they have endorsed candidates from different parties and I think the town is looking for someone who can reach across the aisle.”

The Independence Party has also endorsed Fred Overton and incumbent Dominick Stanzione for town board — candidates that have already received the endorsement of the Republic Committee.

Overton is stepping down from his long time position as town clerk this year. Stanzione is seeking a second term on the town board.

“For the last 48 years, Fred Overton served this community as a volunteer with the Springs Fire Department,” said Jones. “He has run his own business, was our town assessor for eight years and for 13 years has been the town clerk. In all of his positions he has been presented with difficult and confidential situations that were handled with finesse and genuine kindness. He us unflappable.”

Jones cited Stanzione’s ability to work with others and think independently as a board member as the reason for his endorsement.

“More importantly, he has been able to flourish under pressure when he has had to battle to be an independent thinker,” said Jones. “Dominick has stood up to politics and made decisions based on what is good for the people and the environment. He deserves four more years.”

The party also endorsed Carol Brennan — also supported by the Republican Committee — to take Overton’s seat as town clerk, and Joe Bloecker — a town trustee — for assessor. Bloecker also has the support of the Republican Committee.

Carl Irace, an East Hampton attorney who has won the Republican Committee endorsement and served as the assistant town attorney from 2010 to 2012, earned the Independence Party endorsement for town justice, and Stephen Lynch has been supported for another term as superintendent of highways.

Diane McNally, Stephanie Talmage Forsberg, Sean McCaffrey, Nat Miller, Steven Lester, Tim Bock, Brian Pardini, Brian Byrnes and Dennis Curles have the party’s support in the town trustee race.

“The Independence Party is committed to achieving the best government the town can possibly offer,” said Jones and Mansir. “That involves candidates from both parties working diligently together toward the best approaches and innovations for our town. The Independence Party, itself, will work endlessly to achieve these goals.”