The Sessions Report

Animal welfare advocates from across the region came together last week for the latest Express Sessions event, hosted at Union Burger Bar in Southampton Village, to discuss the challenges they face in caring for both wildlife and domestic animals, the issues they’re dealing with currently and the best ways for the community at large to help.

The final in a series of “Local Matters" Express Sessions panel discussions focuses on Westhampton Beach Village and the issues that are important to its residents. The event features a panel of Westhampton Beach Village officials, including Mayor Ralph Urban, as well as community and business leaders.

The first in a new series titled “Local Matters” focused on Southampton Village with an Express Sessions event at Union Burger Bar on October 9. Top of mind for area residents and panelists in attendance were traffic, affordable housing and the continued push to develop a sewer district in Southampton Village.

The latest in the Express Sessions panel discussion series,“ The South Fork’s Bounty, on Land and at Sea,” was held on May 8 at Inlet Seafood in Montauk. Suffolk County has the fourth-largest agricultural sales in New York State, and it is first in aquaculture. In both cases, the farms and waters of the South Fork play an important role in providing food for the region, state and nation. In March, county officials said they are preparing to seek bids on a new government-supported seafood processing facility — and Inlet Seafood in Montauk is one potential location. The discussion brought together key players in the movement toward more sustainable agriculture and aquaculture based on the South Fork. The conversation focused on the challenges they face, the facilities needed to keep the produce and seafood headed to markets, and the outlook for the region’s continued success as a supplier for dinner tables, not to mention new markets for products such as kelp. The panel included K.C. Boyle, co-owner, Dock to Dish; Layton Guenther, director, Quail Hill Farm; Amanda Merro, co-owner, Amber Waves Farm; Wes Peterson, owner, Montauk Seafood Company, member, Dock to Dish; and Jason Weiner, co-owner, Almond Restaurant. It was moderated by Express News Group Executive Editor Joseph P. Shaw.

In February, The Sag Harbor Express talked to Main Street business owners in the village and made a startling discovery. While the summer of 2024, post-COVID, was generally considered the busiest in Sag Harbor’s history, with crowds of people flocking to the business district daily — the businesses did not experience a similar boost. Sales were largely flat, or even slightly down from historical levels. Even some restaurants are struggling. Foot traffic used to be gold for businesses in a village like Sag Harbor. Why are people not shopping like they used to? It’s a symptom of a larger trend: More and more businesses, including many in Sag Harbor, are moving from a brick-and-mortar retail operation to more of an online presence — in some cases, exclusively. Is that the future of retail in villages like Sag Harbor? Our Express Sessions event on April 24 brought together business owners and others to discuss the trends and make sense of both the future for storefronts and the possible digital future of many businesses.

A new half percent tax on real estate purchases in Southampton and East Hampton towns went into effect on April 1, 2023, to raise revenue for affordable housing initiatives. Since then, each town has accumulated millions of dollars to combat the region’s housing crisis. At this Express Sessions discussion, a panel of elected officials and housing advocates assessed how successful the Community Housing Fund has been at tackling a seemingly insurmountable task and discussed the promise the fund holds for the future. In this Sessions Report podcast, Express New Group Publisher Gavin Menu, Executive Editor Joseph Shaw and Managing Editor Bill Sutton share the main takeaways from the discussion.

As the holiday season approaches, there is an opportunity to take a moment to appreciate — and to support, financially — the many nonprofit organizations that enrich the cultural life of the South Fork, and provide a "Helping Hand" to so many families in need. This special Express Sessions event had multiple purposes: to shine a spotlight on the often underappreciated work of so many local charities and volunteers, to talk about the challenges they face in a difficult economy and a post-COVID world, and to provide an ongoing resource at 27east.com that catalogs the many organizations and shares information about how to support them financially or by volunteering, during the holiday season and all year long. The panel included: Molly Bishop, Executive Director, Heart of the Hamptons; Kasia Klimiuk, Co-Director, Our Fabulous Variety Show; Bonnie Cannon, Executive Director, Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center; Dr. Georgette Grier-Key, Executive Director, Eastville Community Historical Society; Andrea Grover, Executive Director, Guild Hall; Susie Roden, President, Coalition for Women's Cancers; and Christina Strassfield, Executive Director, Southampton Arts Center.

Since the recreational use of marijuana was legalized in March 2021, the rollout of the new industry has been erratic. Today, the state is still struggling with creating a legal network of private shops — though Native American tribes, including the Shinnecock, have successfully operated on their own. The Town of Riverhead is expecting a pair of cannabis shops to open in the months ahead, and plans for multiple locations in Southampton Town are underway. What will the final structure of a legal system of cannabis cultivation and sale in New York State look like? And, in particular, how will all of this affect Southampton Town in 2025 and beyond? The Express Sessions hosted a panel on October 24 at Union Burger Bar in Southampton Village with David Falkowski, founding president, Open Minded Organics; Greg Konner, general manager, Konner Development Corp.; Maria Moore, Southampton Town supervisor; Gahrey Ovalle, president, Long Island Cannabis Coalition; and Fred W. Thiele Jr., New York State assemblyman. In this episode of The Sessions Report, Co-Publisher Gavin Menu, Executive Editor Joseph P. Shaw and Managing Editor Bill Sutton play highlights from the discussion and offer further context.

There are numerous passionate residents offering input, though the conversations are splintered and many voices are competing. A major proposal by the Shinnecock Nation for a gas station off Sunrise Highway — and, in the longer term, development on the bluff at Westwoods — has sparked concern among Hampton Bays residents. But there are other pressures: a developer has amassed parcels and has a vision for redevelopment. This Express Sessions forum brings together many of the players in one room to search for common ground and try to identify successful strategies for moving forward on the issues affecting Hampton Bays. THE PANEL: Marion Boden, Hampton Bays resident; Ray D'Angelo, President, Hampton Bays Civic Association; John Leonard, Founder, Hampton Bays Alliance; Gayle Lombardi, Director, Hampton Bays Civic Association; Cyndi McNamara, Southampton Town Councilwoman.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recently completed an $11 million project that widened the beach to protect Montauk properties from rising oceans. Dredging and dumping sand on beaches is expensive, and it’s only a temporary measure — but it remains the preferred strategy, despite the costs. This Express Sessions event on April 4 featured a discussion of beach nourishment, its application on beaches throughout the South Fork, the pluses and minuses, and how regular replenishment can be used both as a short- and long-term strategy, as well as buying time for other approaches, such as coastal retreat.

With 10 acres of tribe-owned land off Sunrise Highway being cleared for a possible travel plaza, which would feature a retail shop and tax-free gasoline pumps, the Shinnecock Nation continues forward with a list of economic development activities. Not far away are the two "monuments" — roadside electronic billboards bringing in advertising revenue. Little Beach Harvest recently opened the first nation-owned marijuana dispensary on Shinnecock territory. Other developments on the table include a cannabis growing facility, and perhaps a spa, as well as a gaming facility. Shinnecock business leaders speak on their vision of the future, and the impact the new revenue is having — and with local leaders speak on their response to a new era for the Shinnecock Nation.

The Express News Group hosted its latest Express Sessions live event, "Can the Winter Be Brisk for Businesses in East Hampton?" on February 1 at Rowdy Hall in Amagansett with East Hampton Village Mayor Jerry Larsen, The Anchor Society founder Bess Rattray, Honest Man Restaurant Group owner Mark Smith and Hal Zwick, the director of commercial real estate at Compass Hamptons. Traditionally, merchants in East Hampton Town and its villages make their money in the busy summer season, then have various strategies for riding out the other half of the year — some stay open to serve locals, others close up shop altogether. But the town has a healthy full-time community, has become more of a year-round destination for part-time residents and the newly formed Greater East Hampton Chamber of Commerce has emerged to help serve and unite the town’s business community. Filling the empty storefronts in the winter could be good for shoppers — and possibly for business owners as well. ' Another part of this conversation is exploring new ideas to replace pulling up the stakes in winter, with a special focus on a new charitable organization, the Anchor Society, and its vision of creating “winter shops” in the typically vacant storefront spaces.

Since 1963, a sprawling 84-acre stretch of Shinnecock Hills has had a college presence, first as Southampton College, then, starting in 2006, as the Southampton campus of Stony Brook University. Over the years, some things have stayed the same — the campus is a focal point for marine science and a bastion of the arts — but the vision for its future has varied. Today, Stony Brook has plans to build a new $300 million hospital on the site, which could spark a new era for the campus. In the meantime, the condition of some buildings have critics crying foul and worrying about Stony Brook's vision — or lack thereof. Several key leaders from the Stony Brook University administration joined Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., a key critic of the state of the campus, State Senator Anthony Palumbo, and former U.S. Representative Tim Bishop, a former Southampton College provost, to discuss the present and future of Stony Brook Southampton.

Sag Harbor Village, with a new mayor at the helm, appears poised to tackle an important planning project, including an update to its zoning code and the potential for the creation of a comprehensive plan, which would serve as a blueprint for the village’s development future. Considering the various pressures the village faces, including a proposal for a new residential and commercial development that could transform the west side of Sag Harbor behind Main Street, continuing concerns about water quality and the need for more affordable housing, a master plan conversation would set the stage for Sag Harbor in the 21st century. What, exactly, should the master plan say? This week's Session Report podcast looks back at an Express Sessions event on November 16 at The American Hotel in Sag Harbor.

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone visited Southampton in late August to announce that the county plans to seek proposals for “innovative traffic solutions” for a seven-mile stretch of County Road 39 from Hampton Bays to Southampton Village. He joined also the Express Sessions conversation on October 26 at Union Sushi & Steak in Southampton, with panel of local and county public officials exploring what those innovations might entail. The addition to Bellone, the guests included Suffolk County Department of Public Works Assistant Chief Engineer Alex Prego, Suffolk County Legislator Bridget Fleming, Southampton Village Police Chief Sue Hurteau, Southampton Town Highway Superintendent Charles McArdle and Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman.

There is no easy solution for the South Fork’s affordable housing crisis, which is striking schools, police departments and volunteer emergency corps hardest. A new idea is to use some of those same properties where men and women are employed, or where they volunteer, to build affordable housing and to give them an inside track at a place they can truly call home, in exchange for their employment or volunteering. Sag Harbor Village Mayor Tom Gardella floated the idea as a Village Board member to use the Sag Harbor Firehouse property in that way, and a similar plan has been pitched to East Hampton schools. Is it one possible answer? On October 12 for the latest Express Sessions discussion The Express News Group assembled Tim Fromm, assistant superintendent of East Hampton School District; Tom Gardella, Sag Harbor Village mayor; Curtis Highsmith, executive director, Southampton Town Housing Authority; Kirby Marcantonio, owner of Hampton Life; and Tommy John Schiavoni, Southampton Town councilman; at the American Hotel in Sag Harbor to discuss these innovation solutions.