27Speaks

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recently completed the bolstering of downtown Montauk’s oceanfront beaches with more than 500,000 tons of sand after just under three weeks of 24/7 work by crews aboard the giant hopper dredge Ellis Island and dozens of on-shore engineers. Reporter Michael Wright joins the editors to discuss the scope of the project and what to expect now that it's complete.

New York State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. of Sag Harbor will retire at the end of his term, which means he will have represented the South Fork in Albany for just shy of 30 years when he's done. He also served time in office as Southampton Town supervisor and Suffolk County legislator. Thiele joins the editors and reporter Stephen J. Kotz on the podcast this week to discuss what he's accomplished during his time in public service and the challenges that the East End continues to face.

Real estate market analyst Jonathan Miller of appraisal firm Miller Samuel Inc. recently joined editors to discuss the state of real estate in the Hamptons and where it’s headed in 2024. Miller, the author of the Elliman Report for Douglas Elliman, has long watched the Hamptons market as well as New York City and many luxury markets across the United States. He noted trends seen nationally and on the East End specifically.

This school year, Pierson High School instituted a new cellphone policy that requires students to put their phones away in locked bags, called Yondr pouches, at the beginning of the school day. The phones stay in the pouches until the security team unlocks them at the end of the day. On this week's podcast, report Cailin Riley joins the editors to discuss how the policy is working out, what other school districts are doing, and the benefits and detriments of no-phone policies in schools.

More than a quarter million people crossed the southern border into the United States in December 2023, a new record. Among the volunteers who were on the American side to provide aid to new arrivals were Elissa McLean and Andy Winter of Noyac. This week, the editors talk to the couple to learn about their experience and interaction with migrants at the border.

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.

At least two dozen applications for cannabis licenses for retail dispensaries in Southampton Town, mainly along Route 27 and Country Road 39, have been filed with the New York State Office of Cannabis Management. Most of these locations are likely placeholders for applicants who don’t need to have a lease or own a prospective building in order to apply for a license. This week, the editors and reporter Tom Gogola discuss what it all means, what might happen next in the process and how many of these applicants might be successful in their efforts.

Brenda Simmons and Dr. Georgette Grier-Key of the Southampton African American Museum and reporter Cailin Riley join the editors on the podcast this week to discuss the Hamptons Civil Rights Back Story audio tour, which includes four “stops,” each with a narrated audio segment, as well as photos, exploring an aspect of Black history in the area. The project is available on the TravelStorys app.

A proposed senior center for the Town of East Hampton comes with a $31.6 million price tag, and the Town Board is considering exercising its right to exempt itself from zoning and move the senior center forward without regulatory review. Some skeptics have spoken up recently to urge the town to take a more measured approach, legally and financially, and make sure everything they are proposing is justifiable and done smartly. Reporter Michael Wright joins the editors on the podcast this week to discuss the project and where it stands.

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.