The Suffolk County judge who halted the construction of a gas station by the Shinnecock Nation in Hampton Bays at the behest of Southampton Town has said that her March 17 preliminary injunction will be modified to allow contractors for the tribe to return to the site to complete some portions of the infrastructure for the sake of securing it in anticipation of an extended pause to the overall construction while the matter wends its way through the legal system.

Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that Justice Maureen Licccione ruled this past Monday that she would allow the contractors who had been working on the construction of the 20-pump gas station since the spring of 2024 to return to complete installation of emergency shut-down valves and to cover them with soil; to finish installing steel support beams and metal decking on the main retail building at the site; to cover the fuel pumps and fuel storage tanks with waterproof barriers or enclosures; and to remove or secure any materials and equipment being stored at the site.

On April 14 the judge allowed the contractors to install securing fences around the travel plaza building and gas pumps area for safety and security purposes, which both the tribe and attorneys for Southampton Town had agreed to.

The judge also said members of the tribe and anyone with their permission may still access the site known as Westwoods at any time but her injunction prohibits any activity that could be construed as furthering the construction of the gas station and travel plaza facilities beyond the specific safety and security measures she approved this week.

The Shinnecock own 79 acres of undeveloped land along the Peconic Bay waterfront in Hampton Bays - bisected by Newtown Road and Sunrise Highway — both of which the tribe says were forced through their land without their permission.

The gas station is meant to be the first phase of development at Westwoods. The tribe has said it also is planning for a 200-room hotel and convention center on the bluffs overlooking Great Peconic Bay that would one day become the foundation of a casino on the property.

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For the first time since 1999, New York's list of endangered and threatened species has been updated, bringing state protection to a migratory shore bird, a bat, and a prehistoric fish which can all be found in and around Long Island, albeit in diminishing numbers. In the coming months, the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation said it will be adding birds, insects, mammals, reptiles and additional amphibians to the list. Tracy Tullis reports in NEWSDAY that protection by the state could prove critical as the Trump administration proposes new rules to weaken the federal Endangered Species Act, and scientists warn the Earth is tipping toward a mass extinction. According to a 2023 study by the biodiversity research group NatureServe, 40% of animals are at risk. Several species added by the DEC are already on the federal endangered species list, including the three found on Long Island: the northern long-eared bat, the Atlantic sturgeon and the rufa red knot. Red knots embark every spring on one of the longest migrations in the animal kingdom, from Tierra del Fuego to the Canadian Arctic, and back again in the fall. They stop over on South Shore beaches during this epic 9,300-mile migration. Their populations are declining because of habitat loss and because a critical food source—horseshoe crab eggs—are also declining. Six fish species were added to New York's threatened list and 10 to the list of species of "special concern." Three of the new special concern species are native to Long Island: the black bullhead, eastern pirate perch and American eel, a migratory fish challenged by restricted spawning habitat because of the many dams on the Island’s rivers and streams. More species will be added to the list in the coming months, including birds, mammals, reptiles, and insects.

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An anonymous letter is circulating throughout the Southampton community, calling into question the alleged “segregation” of students and mistreatment of administrators and staff within the Southampton Union Free School District. Michelle Trauring reports on 27east.com that sent in plain white envelopes with no return address, the letter — a laundry list of criticisms riddled with spelling and grammatical errors — largely accuses the district of preferential treatment toward African American and Shinnecock Nation students, and attacks Superintendent of Schools Dr. Fatima Morrell for certain choices made since her hiring less than a year ago. “For most of us is division and segregation towards one part of our school district,” the letter reads. “But we are not informed of what’s happening in our district and is our fault because with our busy life we don’t get involve anymore. And now, if you say something you will be call racist. In the meantime, some of our kids are being left aside.”

On Monday, Dr. Morrell responded in a districtwide statement to the Southampton community. She called the anonymous letter “libelous, defamatory, divisive and disrespectful.”

“Over the course of my career, I have not felt a need to address ‘anonymous’ correspondence,” she wrote. “This letter, however, was so incendiary that I must respond to mitigate the potentially harmful impact such a piece could have on the level of trust invested in my superintendency and in the Board of Education. I will not accept this ‘anonymous’ author’s attempt to thwart the excellent operations of our district, potentially causing a deleterious impact on the school life of our students and families,” said Superintendent of Southampton Schools Dr. Fatima Morrell regarding an anonymous letter accusing her of prejudicial leadership.

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Food prices in the New York metropolitan region, including Long Island, spiked 25% since 2019 and more than 56% in the past decade, according to a report released yesterday by NYS Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. Robert Brodsky reports in NEWSDAY that throughout the state, 11.3% of households, or about 875,000 families, experienced food insecurity between 2020 and 2022, in part due to the expiration of pandemic-era federal assistance programs. Food banks on Long Island said they've seen a major uptick in individuals seeking assistance in recent years, while at the same time they are experiencing a reduction in funding after federal programs were cut by the USDA.

"Food prices rose sharply during the pandemic, putting more New Yorkers at risk of going hungry," DiNapoli said in a statement. "Now the implementation of tariffs and potential cuts to federal food and other support programs may exacerbate the problem. State and local efforts to promote access to high quality, affordable food are more important than ever to reduce food insecurity and ensure New York’s families have enough to eat."

Paule Pachter, chief executive of Long Island Cares-The Harry Chapin Regional Food Bank, said Nassau and Suffolk counties are experiencing similar levels of food insecurity.

From 2023-2024, Long Island Cares experienced a 30% increase — or an additional 65,000 Long Islanders — of individuals coming into its food banks, soup kitchens and pantries to seek assistance, Pachter said. Those numbers are in addition to the estimated 221,000 Long Islanders already experiencing food insecurity, he said.

The main reason, he said, "is the cost of nutritious foods like eggs, milk, lean proteins, the cost of chicken and so on," he said. "And given all the other expenses that families on Long Island have ... it's cutting in to people being able to purchase the food that they need."

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The Greater Westhampton Chamber of Commerce will host its annual Spring Fling Festival this coming Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Main Street will be closed to traffic from Library Avenue to Moniebogue Lane during the event hours.

The event will feature music all day by East End Entertainment LI with DJ Michael, and The Mystic will perform from 1 to 3 p.m., playing a wide variety of pop and classic rock songs. There will also be plenty of activities for children in Maria Z. Moore Community Park, including a candy hunt, a bounce kingdom, games and a petting zoo. Also featured will be a mobile golf simulator, a photo booth, aerialist performances, food trucks, beer and wine, specialty food and craft vendors and artisan vendors.

This weekend in Westhampton will also include the opening of the Farmers Market on the Village Green on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and sidewalk sales by participating merchants this Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For more information, visit the chamber’s website at westhamptonchamber.org.

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Gov. Kathy Hochul is pushing for changes in the state budget that would give her the authority to cut up to $2 billion in state spending without an official vote from the NYS Legislature if revenues drop unexpectedly. Keshia Clukey reports in NEWSDAY that the proposal, which is still being negotiated with legislative leaders, would allow the governor to create a plan for spending cuts under certain emergency circumstances that the State Legislature could choose to approve without having to return to Albany, according to a legislative source familiar with negotiations and confirmed yesterday by State Senate Finance Committee Chair Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan).

If the legislature disagrees with the governor’s plan, it would then come up with its own reduction plan, which Hochul would have to agree to, Krueger confirmed. Hochul, in Manhattan on Wednesday, told reporters she is seeking legislative changes to allow her to act quickly in the case of emergencies.

"The legislature would have to approve this, but it’s been in our laws before…I want to make sure that I can work with lightning speed if a crisis arises of the magnitude that would call for this trigger."

The proposal comes as New York and other states face increased costs because of tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on imported goods, as well as massive federal funding cuts proposed by the administration and Republicans in Congress, including to safety net programs, potentially shifting billions of dollars in Medicaid costs to the states.

Economists also have warned of a potential recession.

Hochul and state legislative leaders have said they wouldn’t work with hypotheticals when negotiating the state’s budget, but plan instead to come back for a special session if needed.

Cutting budgets midyear is "always terrible" and "transparency is crucial," Krueger told Newsday.

As of yesterday, parts of the budget were still being discussed and budget bills had yet to materialize. Negotiations are expected to take a few more days.

The annual NYS budget is supposed to be approved by the state legislature as of April 1.