To The Residents of East Hampton:
About two weeks ago, at the Thursday evening Town Board meeting, members secretly added a number of walk-on resolutions to the Town Board meeting agenda. Three of the resolutions were for a public hearing to rezone tracts of land to suit the developers. Most prominently among them, 555 Montauk Highway (555 project). As background, an out-of-town developer bought the 22 acres of farm land from the Principi family and has sought to change zoning. Currently, according to our ‘Comprehensive Town Plan’ (2005), they are permitted to develop residential three- acre lots, some smaller lots and a small commercial center. However, their plans call for 79 condo units. Given the roughly million dollar a unit price tag, they will be marketed to baby boomers that can afford to spend this kind of money on second homes. These are hardly local senior citizens in need of affordable housing! The developer’s plan ran afoul of the Planning Department, whose job it is to analyze the effects of such a large project on issues like the traffic on route 27, the available infrastructure and generally the quality of life for those of us who live here.
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Nearly all of us live somewhere close to a tract of land that we would not want to see developed in this way. It is not only an Amagansett issue. It is relevant to Montauk (Fort Pond House), Springs (girl scout camp currently owned by Nassau County), Wainscott (sandpit, pine barrens around the airport), Northwest, and Sag Harbor. That is why we have zoning laws. That is why we have a citizen directed Comprehensive Town Plan and that is why we have a town Planning Department. There is also a precedent at stake. Anyone with a current zoning of 3 acres (just like 555) could request down-zoning, even if the area were already developed, in hopes of a windfall in profits.
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My second homeowner friends from NYC and some summer visitors, who spend their dollars in Amagansett and thus support our economy, are appalled at this story. They may just choose a different location for their next holiday. My point is that for every new condo owner, we may well lose a previous Amagansett summer vacationer. This story will eventually be covered in high profile papers, like the New York Times. Nobody wins except the developer.
I wish to register my strongest objection to the apparent short sighted plan to ramrod this zoning change thru the lame duck session of the present town board. The voters of this town will remember if you sell out the community in favor of the developer.
Sincerely,
David
