Home News Southold Town Government Year-round beach parking stickers, deer harvesting and hamlet parking restrictions: Southold town...

Year-round beach parking stickers, deer harvesting and hamlet parking restrictions: Southold town board wrap

Southold Town will open its cooler for harvested deer storage in the evenings during October this year, hoping it will boost participation in the deer hunting program during that month.

Public works director Jeff Standing told board members at yesterday’s work session that hunters have requested evening access to the cooler in October, because the weather can be too warm for non-cooler storage overnight.

“We think that people are not harvesting deer because there’s nowhere to put it until 8 a.m.,” he said.

The cooler is regularly open from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. during deer hunting season.

“If we find that there’s nobody coming to the cooler, then come next year, we won’t do it,” Standish said.

Board members also agreed to a deer management committee suggestion to allow up to 10 Suffolk County residents who are veterans to hunt on town-owned lands. Standish said the town would hold a lottery to choose the hunters if more than 10 veterans applied.

The deer hunting season on Long Island opens with archery season, which runs from Oct. 1 through Jan. 31.

A bill is on the governor’s desk that would extend the season through March 31, Standish said. If the governor signs the bill, it’s not likely it would take effect until 2018, he said.

Water authority new storage tank
Construction work for the Suffolk County Water Authority’s new 2 million-gallon water storage tank on its property in Laurel will soon begin, Standish told board members yesterday during their work session.

People should not be walking near the construction site for safety reason, he said. It’s not part of the trail system, but those who go off trail should stay away from the site, he said. The town will be posting signage to notify people to keep out.

Construction will take at least a year, Standish said.

The water authority told the town it will restore the right of way to its original condition, Standish said. “They are bringing in big equipment and it will leave ruts,” he said. “We will take a lot of pictures and video before they start,” he said.

The water authority will help the town fix up the new area where a main is going in, Standish said, but the town will have to contribute to it.

“They’re doing what they can to minimize impacts on the community during construction,” Supervisor Scott Russell said, “and minimize visual impacts when it’s done.”

Councilman William Ruland said the town must make sure it gets the proper indemnification from the Suffolk County Water Authority, not just its contractors, some of whom are known to be “less than reputable,” he said.

Hamlet parking

Board members also discussed developing an overall plan for parking in the various hamlets and the feasibility of imposing time restrictions on some parking spaces to make sure they remain available for short-term parking.

“We promote downtown development, so we need to make sure we have enough parking for the next decade or so,” Russell said.

The town owns very few parking areas, Standish said. More parking in the existing municipal lot serving Love Lane could be attained by reconfiguring it, eliminating some of the islands and re-striping it.

A lot can also be done with signage, he said.

Beach stickers, boat ramps discussed

The town board will set a public hearing on a proposal to make beach parking stickers required year-round.

“Our season is no longer three months, it’s six months,” said Councilwoman Jill Doherty, who brought the idea to the table.

Doherty also proposed imposing a fee for the use of town boat ramps.

“Right now, anyone can come from anywhere and use our ramps for free,” Doherty said. “They come and launch their boats and then go park someplace and they don’t have to pay for anything,” she said.

The board agreed and the town attorney will draft a code revision which will be set for a public hearing at a later date.

In other action yesterday, the town board:

  • Approved the Cutchogue-New Suffolk Historical Council’s annual “Back in Time Before 1959” car show, which will take place on October 2 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Cutchogue Village Green.
  • Hired John E. Baglivi to open, close and clean several beach bathrooms on weekends from Sept. 10 to Sept. 25.
  • Retained Devitt Spellman Barrett LLP as special counsel to represent Town of Southold in Suffolk County Supreme Court in a lawsuit brought by Frank J. Kelly and Elizabeth G. Kelly.
  • Retained the law firm Sinnreich, Kosakoff and Messina, LLP, as special counsel to the Town of Southold in a civil action against a property owner.
  • Set a public hearing for Oct. 4, 2016 at 4:30 p.m. regarding a law change to set regulations on dumpsters, limiting them to two weeks in a front or side yard of a residential property unless the property currently has an open and valid building permit.
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Denise Civiletti
Denise is a veteran local reporter and editor, an attorney and former Riverhead Town councilwoman. Her work has been recognized with numerous awards, including a “writer of the year” award from the N.Y. Press Association in 2015. She is a founder, owner and co-publisher of this website.