27Speaks

Reporter Stephen Kotz joins the editors to discuss the first in a three-part series appearing in Express News Group newspapers looking at the college campus in Shinnecock Hills once known as Southampton College and now known as Stony Brook Southampton.

The first offshore wind turbine to power New York State went into service on December 6, and 11 more turbines are slated to be completed soon, bringing the long-aborning South Fork Wind project to fruition. Reporters Michael Wright and Tom Gogola join the editors on the podcast to discuss South Fork Wind and the future of wind power for Long Island.

In this week's edition of 27Speaks, the editors talk about organized retail and car thieves targeting the South Fork, a home being built in Riverhead for Habitat for Humanity using insulated concrete forms, the arrest of a man accused of defacing sites in Montauk with antisemitic graffiti, and Kidd Squid’s new Brew for The Bay Sag Harbor, a limited edition beer that, in collaboration with Cornell Cooperative Extension, will be sold to raise funds and awareness for eelgrass revitalization and oyster bed restoration.

The Rolling Stones and Rowdy Hall are on the same page: "I must have it painted black." On this week's 27Speaks podcast, reporter Michael Wright joins the editors to discuss the saga of Rowdy Hall facade at its new Amagansett location. After the East Hampton Town Architectural Review Board refused to approve a black facade, the owners of Rowdy Hall had it painted black anyway and are taking the town to court to defend the move.

The editors discuss how the Southampton Fire Department made birthday wishes come true for an 11-year-old boy with autism, the public's right under the Freedom of Information Law to access elected officials' writings, a fentanyl-smuggling scheme at the Suffolk County jail in Riverside and two films that will screen at Hamptons Doc Fest — “26.2 to Life” by Christine Yoo about prisoners running a marathon at San Quentin, and “999: The Forgotten Girls of the Holocaust” by Heather Dune Macadam.

Maria Moore, the current mayor of Westhampton Beach Village and the supervisor-elect of Southampton Town, joins the editors on 27Speaks to discuss the 2023 election and her plans when she assumes office in January 2024.

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 Sessions Report podcast looks back at an Express Sessions event on November 16 at The American Hotel in Sag Harbor.

Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, the longtime East Hampton Town councilwoman elected town supervisor on November 7, joins the editors on 27Speaks to discuss her agenda as she prepares to take the helm in January.

This week on 27Speaks, the editors each bring a recent news story to the table for discussion: antisemitic graffiti in Montauk and the community's reaction, the ideas that came out of an Express Sessions panel on solving the South Fork's traffic's woes, and the third-quarter market reports for Hamptons real estate.

For 14 months straight, Heart of the Hamptons has seen a monthly increase in the number of people coming to the food pantry it operates out of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary Roman Catholic Church on Hill Street, and that streak shows no signs of ending, especially as the organization heads into what are typically its busiest months of the year. Executive Director Molly Bishop joins the editors on the podcast this week to discuss the underlying causes of the growth in need and to share how Heart of the Hamptons staff and volunteers are working to keep up with the demand.