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***

New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli is projected to be the winner of his Democratic primary, fending off two challengers.

The Associated Press projected a DiNapoli victory based on results from the state Board of Elections.

With nearly three-quarters of the election districts reporting, DiNapoli led with 60% of the vote.

Steve Hughes reports in NEWSDAY that the NYS comptroller manages the $295 billion state pension fund and serves as the state’s chief fiscal watchdog.

DiNapoli, 72, of Great Neck Plaza and a lifelong resident of Long Island, has been in office since 2007.

He will face Republican Joseph Hernandez in November.

In the Town of East Hampton, incumbent Democratic Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez defeated East Hampton Village Mayor Jerry Larsen. Final results were still trickling in last night, but Larsen conceded to Burke-Gonzalez. As of late Tuesday, Burke-Gonzalez had 2,054 votes to Larsen’s 1,245 — or 62 percent to 38 percent. With no Republican on the November ballot, Burke-Gonzalez victory in yesterday’s primary likely determines that she will continue to lead East Hampton Town next year.

Meanwhile, Brendan J. O’Reilly reports on 27east.com that Chris Gallant, a veteran from Amity Harbor, is now the 2026 Democratic nominee in the race to represent New York’s 1st Congressional District, having bested Lukas Ventouras of Northport in that primary election yesterday.

Gallant’s insurmountable lead last night stood at 59.9 percent of the vote, 11,565 to 6,780.

Gallant, 37, now faces two-term incumbent Republican U.S. Representative Nick LaLota, 47, of Amityville in the general election this November.

***

This year's Earth and Space Sciences and Biology Regents exams are drawing scrutiny from local school leaders and parents, who say the questions did not reflect the curriculum taught to students and contained errors.

Lorena Mongelli reports in NEWSDAY that as a result, officials in several Long Island school districts have said they will not count the scores from the two exams, which were administered last Thursday, if they hurt a student’s final average.

“We were not able to review the test until the day of the exam ... We began to see that there were some questions we had particular concerns about," said John Murphy, principal of Walt Whitman High School in the South Huntington district, one of the school districts that has raised concerns about the exams.

State Education Department spokesman JP O'Hare in a statement yesterday said classroom instruction, overseen by local schools, was responsible for ensuring the curriculum aligned with state standards.

“Through the New York State Education Department’s extensive, industry-standard test development processes, carried out in collaboration with hundreds of NYS teachers, we are confident that the Regents Exams are well-aligned with the state’s learning standards," O'Hare said. He said in the coming weeks the exam will be posted publicly, including scoring materials.

This is the second year in a row that the biology and earth science Regents exams have been criticized for asking about material not covered in class.

Timothy Eagen, president of Suffolk County School Superintendents Association told NEWSDAY on Tuesday, “This is a complex issue that deserves thoughtful examination from multiple perspectives, with students and their ability to fairly demonstrate their learning remaining at the center of the conversation...For Earth and Space Science, teachers have noted meaningful differences in this year’s exam compared to previously released versions that had been used to guide instruction and student preparation. For Biology, concerns have been raised regarding errors identified within portions of the examination,” he said.

While the state Education Department will no longer require students to pass Regents exams to graduate high school, beginning with students who started ninth grade in 2024, they must continue taking the exams until fall 2027 due to state and federal mandates requiring assessments, according to the state.

***

NYS Attorney General Letitia James’s office yesterday released the body camera footage of the fatal shooting of a Northampton man by Southampton Town Police officers last month on Mother’s Day.

Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that the camera footage shows that the officers fired six shots at the man, Steven Eastwood, as he stood over his mother’s prone body in her home, stabbing her repeatedly with a large knife.

The footage from the bodycams of all three officers starts as they dash from the driveway toward the home on Topping Drive on the afternoon of May 10. The three officers had been dispatched to the property following a 911 call from Eastwood’s mother, who had said her son was at the house, intoxicated and threatening her with a knife.

As the officers enter the house, first into a foyer and then turning to the right into a kitchen and dining area, the first glimpse of Eastwood shows him bent over his mother, who is on the floor, with his back to the officers. His mother can be heard groaning as she lays on her back on the floor — at one point she simply says “Ow” over and over again. An empty wheelchair is beside her.

When Eastwood straightens up and turns toward the officers, both of his forearms and chest can be seen covered in blood, the knife still in his hand.

While the image of the victim is mostly blurred in the footage, THE VIDEO IS VERY GRAPHIC and the attorney general’s office released it with a warning for viewers to use discretion.

Inside the house the three officers repeatedly scream at Eastwood to drop the knife. At least one of them calls Eastwood by his first name several times.

Southampton Town Police had been called to the home on several previous occasions because of conflicts between Eastwood and his mother, Southampton Town Police Chief James Kiernan said the day after the incident.

As Eastwood turns to the officers and starts moving toward them, two of the officers back out the front door of the house. The third officer, retreats through the foyer and into the home’s living room.

Eastwood follows the two officers out the front door, standing briefly on the front porch, still holding the knife as they continue to shout for him to drop it.

After a hesitating pause, he turns and goes back into the house and into the kitchen.

As the officers come back into the house and turn into the kitchen, the camera footage shows that he has once again begun stabbing his mother — who can be seen raising one hand toward her son in self-defense.

Officer Jake Jurgensen, who joined the Town Police force just last fall, fires five shots almost immediately and Eastwood spins away from the officers and crumples to the floor. A single additional shot is fired as he goes down.

In the aftermath of the shooting, Kiernan had praised the officers for their restraint on first contact with Eastwood, disengaging and backing away from him as he came toward them with the knife. But, he said, when Eastwood had resumed his attack on his mother, they were left with no choice but to use deadly force.

Eastwood was pronounced dead at the scene. His mother, whom police have not named, survived the attack despite suffering more than 40 stab and slash wounds.

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***

Today is primary day in New York State. The polls opened at 6 a.m. and will remain open until 9 p.m. throughout Long Island.

Billy House reports in NEWSDAY that while party primaries often don't attract big voter turnouts, these races could have potentially significant impacts, including on which party takes the majority in the 435-seat U.S. House, which Republicans now control by a narrow margin.

In early voting, 16,480 people cast ballots in Nassau and 6,721 in Suffolk.

Here’s a rundown on some of what’s at stake:

In the 1st Congressional District which includes the east end:

Chris Gallant, 37, of Amity Harbor, a Black Hawk pilot, Army veteran, National Guardsman, former air traffic controller and volunteer firefighter, faces Lukas Ventouras, 25, of Northport, who is attending St. John’s School of Law, and has worked on past political campaigns. The winner takes on incumbent Congressman Nick LaLota (R-Amityville) in November. CD1 is entirely in Suffolk County.

NYS comptroller

Democrat Thomas DiNapoli, 72, faces his first primary challenge since he assumed the office in 2007, running against Raj Goyle, 51, who has worked on a number of philanthropic campaigns in New York City, and Drew Warshaw, 45, the executive director of a nonprofit housing firm.

East Hampton

East Hampton Town's Democratic primary pits incumbent Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, 64, against challenger East Hampton Village Mayor Jerry Larsen, 61. With no Republican on the November ballot, today's contest is likely to determine who takes office next year.

For voter info go to Elections.ny.gov.

***

The Long Island Builders Institute {LIBI} has formed a coalition focused on construction issues on the East End to help reverse a trend of permit delays for new builds and renovations that have caused industry slowdowns.

The group, Long Island Builders Institute’s East End Council, will advocate for more efficient online permitting systems and broader permit reforms across the twin fork's five towns and various villages, LIBI CEO Mike Florio told Newsday.

Builders in East Hampton Town have been hit hard by permit delays, with lengthy plan reviews slowing projects and creating uncertainty across the industry. The Town of East Hampton has outsourced reviews to architectural firms and hired more employees to process a lengthy backlog that has left some builders waiting for more than a year for permits.

“We’re looking to unify under one voice to address our regional issues with solutions,” said Michael Forst, a third-generation East Hampton builder and president of Forst Construction.

Alek Lewis reports in NEWSDAY that members of the construction trade group recently met in Southampton to share frustrations and agreed that LIBI should expand its presence on the East End. The industry group hasn’t maintained a dedicated chapter in the region for more than a decade, builders said.

Forst will serve as the group’s co-chair, representing the South Fork, while Fred Seifert, part-owner of Seifert Construction in Mattituck, will serve as a co-chair representing the North Fork.

The construction and real estate industry is a key economic driver on the East End, particularly the multimillion-dollar luxury home market. The median home price in the Hamptons jumped to a record high of $2.4 million in the first quarter of the year, Newsday has reported. The median home price on the North Fork was just shy of $1 million, close to the record high of $1.1 million.

Among LIBI East End Council priorities is increasing affordable housing and train service for the area’s workforce, as well as lobbying for policies that lower construction costs, Forst and Seifert said.

“If we want our future contractors and tradesmen to be able to work here, they obviously have to live here,” Seifert said. “We need to find ways to be able to get affordable housing for them and keep our talent here on the East End.”

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***

The 126th U.S. Open Golf Championship at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club has concluded with Wyndham Clark the winner…he led through all four rounds and while the Denver, Colorado native was clearly not yesterday’s crowd favorite, Clark persevered and last night brought home his second National Championship trophy. The U.S. Open has now been played here in Southampton six times. Shinnecock Hills Golf Club…founded in 1891…hosted the second U.S. Open championship in 1896 then again in 1986, 1995, 2004, 2018, and 2026.

United States Golf Association CEO Mike Whan opened Sunday evening’s closing ceremony by expressing gratitude to the many local and regional governmental agencies who worked together effectively to make this international sporting event a major success…including the State of New York, Suffolk County, the host town of Southampton, the village of Southampton, the Shinnecock Tribal Nation and the Long Island Railroad.

Whan jokingly apologized to south fork residents "for what we did to you this week" due to tournament congestion…although overall traffic through Southampton was a little lighter than customary for the third week of June.

Whan also offered a huge thank you to the 3,300 volunteers…most of whom were from Long Island.

Wyndham Clark, now the 2026 U.S. Open champion, will be awarded $4.5 million, while the USGA’s total prize purse this week at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club was $22.5 million.

***

What goes up must come down.

After the 126th U.S. Open ended last night at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, local attention shifted to what comes next at Shinnecock Hills and the surrounding areas.

Ben Dickson reports in NEWSDAY that the process of restoring normalcy across Southampton has already begun.

Long Island native John Ryan Celiberti, the USGA’s assistant director of U.S. Open championships, told Newsday during Sunday’s final round that “we’ll hopefully get Shinnecock back to being Shinnecock probably [in] August.

“The circus comes in, the circus goes out,” he said. “But the next two months are really a process of getting everything out.”

Celiberti said yesterday, “We got the Palm Tree Festival over at Shinnecock Nation [this coming Saturday], so that’s my priority Monday making sure all of our supplies are cleared off over the next two days so that they can start preparing for their event” on tribal territory.

The construction that began in earnest in March — pushed back a bit because of the late-February blizzard, which produced snow drifts almost up to the second floor of the Shinnecock Hills clubhouse and completely shut down Tuckahoe Road — was completed with its final touches on June 14...the day before tournament week began.

Shinnecock Hills members should be able to get back on the course sometime within the next week. Forklifts and vehicles might be driving around to clean things up, but that shouldn’t interrupt play.

Celiberti said Tuckahoe Road south of the course “probably” will reopen Monday afternoon and that Tuckahoe Road through the golf course will reopen this coming Friday.

The USGA and local authorities worked to create a “contraflow lane” on Route 27, which turns into County Road 39, for designated vehicles to get to and from the course. That was important to avoid “The Trade Parade” of vehicles that come out to the Hamptons on a daily basis.

Additional Long Island Rail Road services also ran to the temporary Shinnecock Hills platform, built across the street from the course — adjacent to Stony Brook’s Southampton campus — and connected via a pedestrian bridge.

The LIRR during tournament week was the Open’s most-used mode of transportation.

Yesterday U.S.G.A. officials said almost 60% of fans took the LIRR to the final round of the championship.

Overall, the U.S.G.A. views the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock as a major success and plans on recap meetings with local authorities to come up with learning lessons in preparation for ten years from now - June of 2036 - when Shinnecock Hills Golf Club will host both the men’s and women’s U.S. Opens in back-to-back weeks.

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***

Atlantic Golf Club, Noyac Golf Club and Sebonack Golf Club are all less than 10 miles away from Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.

But at this time of year, they might as well be on another planet.

Cailin Riley reports on 27east.com that the superintendents who oversee those courses never see each other from late spring to early fall. Their heads remain down, for months on end, from sunrise to sunset, making sure conditions are perfect for the members.

But every decade or so, an international sporting event brings them together.

At this year’s 126th U.S. Open Golf Championship…which teed off at 6:30 this morning…Shinnecock Hills superintendent Jon Jennings has a huge team of volunteers helping him and his regular team ensure the golf course is set up and in perfect condition to provide a worthy test for the world’s best players, as the course steps into the global spotlight, hosting the Open for the sixth time.

The course benefits from its unique position in what is widely regarded as one of the top golf meccas in the world. While Shinnecock is the star, lauded courses like National Golf Links of America, Southampton Golf Club and Sebonack Golf Club are a chip shot away, while other highly regarded courses like Noyac, The Bridge and Atlantic are in close vicinity as well.

During the week, superintendents from those courses are volunteering their time, expertise and several of their own staff members to the huge undertaking of course preparation and maintenance at Shinnecock Hills for the sport’s national championship, while still ensuring their own clubs, just as busy as ever at this time of year, are running smoothly.

Jennings tells 27east.com that having so many superintendents from so many highly regarded golf courses willing to contribute and in such close proximity during a major championship is special.

“The density of good golf courses in this area is rare…And the ability to be able to draw from that talent is also rare…It’s really helping out a lot.”

Jennings indicates he’s deeply appreciative of our east end golf community’s spirit of teamwork.

“The importance of local support is really, really key to the success of the championship,” he said…I may be biased, but the best golf in the world is here on Long Island.”

***

Cutchogue Civic Association will hold a panel discussion on the current housing situation, “What Does It Take to Live on the North Fork?” Perspectives on our Housing Crisis,” this evening at 5 p.m. at the Cutchogue-New Suffolk Library.

Attendees will hear about the history of housing in the community, the current real estate data, and the burden the housing shortage causes for essential workers and business owners.

“There is no easy fix, but there are programs that are underway that might lessen the impact on future lives in Cutchogue,” according to the civic association.

Panelists include Community Housing Advocate Katy Stokes, The Giving Room owner Paula DiDonato, True North Associates’ Michael Daly, and Beth Young, editor of the East End Beacon.

That’s “What Does It Take to Live on the North Fork?” later today at 5 p.m. in the Cutchogue-New Suffolk Library.

Also related to the North Fork housing crisis, Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that the Town of Southold is considering using a portion of its Community Housing Fund revenue for a new first-time homebuyer down payment assistance loan program that could provide 18 percent of the cost to purchase a home on northeastern Long Island — up to $135,000.

Southold Town Community Development Project Supervisor Andrea Sullivan gave an overview of the proposal to the Southold Town Board at its work session this week, as she and members of the town’s Planning Department gave an overview of their work addressing community housing as a new top priority in the town’s Zoning Update.

Ms. Sullivan said she is working with town planners on adding a new chapter to the code, Chapter 112, devoted exclusively to the administration of community housing. She said that chapter will likely be brought to a Town Board code committee in August.

Councilwoman Alexa Suess said Tuesday, “The idea is looking at these solutions in parallel. These code changes are going to take a little while,” she said. “We’re trying to come at it from multiple angles at once.”

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***

A motor vehicle crash on County Road 39 that left two people injured, one very seriously, caused gridlock traffic through most of western Southampton and Southampton Village late yesterday.

Michael Wright reports on 27east.com

that traffic along the Montauk Highway and County Road 39 corridor had been flowing well on Tuesday afternoon thanks to police officers posted at traffic lights to allow commuter traffic to bypass the usual red-green cycle, until the crash occurred shortly before 5 p.m.

According to Southampton Town officials, the single-vehicle crash occurred just to the west of Shrubland Road. Passersby reported that the vehicle was heavily damaged. One of the two people in the vehicle was trapped inside and had to be cut out by Southampton Fire Department heavy rescue crews with the “Jaws of Life.”

The more badly injured person was then taken to Southampton Village where a Suffolk County Police Department medevac helicopter was waiting to fly the person to Stony Brook University Hospital at about 6 p.m. The other victim of the crash was taken to the hospital by an ambulance to be treated for non life-threatening injuries.

County Road 39 remained closed more than another hour while the accident scene was cleaned up. As of 7:30 p.m., the road was open again but westbound traffic from Water Mill to Shinnecock Hills crawled until nearly 10 o'clock last night.

***

Walmart expects to finish enlarging its Riverhead store into a supercenter, with an added grocery store, by next spring, according to plans submitted to the town.

Tory N. Parrish reports in NEWSDAY that the Riverhead store is one of three existing Long Island stores, including those in Islandia and East Meadow, for which Walmart has submitted plans to municipalities since early 2025 to enlarge the locations into supercenters.

With the planned Long Island expansion projects, the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer is aiming to grab a larger slice of grocery spending across Nassau and Suffolk. Walmart is the largest grocer nationwide by far, but on Long Island, Stop & Shop ranks first.

“With the potential to expand our existing Islandia and Riverhead stores into supercenters, we are excited about the opportunity to bring expanded grocery offerings, services, and new career opportunities to the community,” Walmart spokeswoman Mariel Messier told NEWSDAY this week.

Walmart Inc. has 14 stores on Long Island, including a Sam’s Club warehouse store in Medford; a Neighborhood Market, which is a grocery store, in Levittown; and three supercenters.

For Walmart to move forward with its Riverhead project, the retailer must receive site plan approval from the town’s planning board, along with approvals from the Suffolk County Department of Public Works, Suffolk County Department of Health Services and two town agencies, Greg Bergman, senior planner for the Town of Riverhead, told NEWSDAY.

Walmart’s Riverhead store, at 1890 Old Country Rd. in Gateway Plaza, opened in 2014. The store was a relocation of a smaller store that opened in 2001 on Old Country Road.

***

More than 500,000 eligible Long Islanders will receive $659.2 million in tax relief beginning this summer through New York’s School Tax Relief (STAR) program.

Maureen Mullarkey reports in NEWSDAY that Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Monday that 572,000 Long Island homeowners out of the nearly 3 million eligible New Yorkers can expect to receive a STAR credit or STAR exemption on their school tax bill.

The Long Island figures are down slightly from last year's, when the state said 582,000 Long Island homeowners received $698.4 million.

Meanwhile, with the 126th U.S. Open Golf Championship at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club bringing mass media attention to the south fork and their frequent mention of the enormous wealth that surrounds us you can be sure the Golf Channel and N.B.C. will slip in this next story…if they haven’t already.

For Rachel Weiss reports in NEWSDAY that an oceanfront estate in Sagaponack has hit the market for $152.5 million, making it the most expensive public listing on Long Island. The taxes are about $105,000.

A sale at this price would beat a record set last year, when an Amagansett property closed for $115 million, the highest amount ever paid for a single parcel in “The Hamptons.” It was also the priciest closing of 2025 by a landslide, with a $66.75 million home sale in East Hampton coming in second.

The Sagaponack property features seven bedrooms and 10 bathrooms, spanning 9,500 square feet of living space. There is an additional 2,000 square feet of covered porches.

The home was built in 2017 and completely renovated last year according to listing agent Terry Cohen, of Compass. The estate, on Fairfield Pond Lane, encompasses 4 acres and more than 360 feet of ocean frontage. There are waterfront views from all of the gathering rooms inside.

Outside, there is a tennis court, kitchenette and a 46-by-16-foot infinity pool with a waterfall feature. Inside, amenities include a gym, dual-sided fireplace, sauna, spa tub, 15-foot ceilings and panoramic ocean views.

In the luxury market nationwide, including Palm Beach in Florida and parts of northern California, it is "really difficult" to find something as turnkey as this property, Cohen said.

"It's a very rare opportunity," she added.

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***

Nearly a year after its previous contract expired, the Bridgehampton Teachers Association finally inked a new agreement with the Bridgehampton School District this week.

Cailin Riley reports on 27east.com that Joseph Pluta and Caitlin Hansen, co-presidents of the teachers association issued a statement;

“It was a long journey, but we are very satisfied with the outcome…We also acknowledge that we could not have achieved this without the overwhelming support from the community. Their kind words and support have meant everything to us and serve as a reminder of how special the Bridgehampton community is…We also recognize how Dr. Brigid Collins was able to truly change the tone of the negotiations and played a key role in completing them.”

The five-year contract is retroactive to July 1 of 2025, and runs through June 30, 2030.

Highlights of the new agreement include the creation of a “Management Labor Committee” for the purpose of “promoting effective communication and addressing matters of mutual concern.”

The committee will meet at least four times per year and will include representatives appointed by the district and by the BTA.

Changes to child-rearing leave enable teachers to use their sick time to continue paid leave past the 12-week Family and Medical Leave Act allowance, and contractually agreed upon evening parent-teacher conferences “will be a great opportunity for working parents that are not able to make it during the day,” stated union heads.

Three percent salary increases are built in for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 school years, with 2.5 percent increases for the three remaining years on the contract. Retroactive pay will be provided for the 2025-26 school year as well.

For the 2025-2026 school year, teachers and nurses will pay 19 percent and teaching assistants will pay 16 percent of the individual or family health plan premiums, with a 0.25 percent increase in that number built in for each consecutive school year over the length of the agreement.

Effective July 1, and for the remainder of the life of the contract, the district will contribute $40,000 per year to a dental insurance plan and $9,000 per year to an optical insurance plan, both to be selected by the BTA membership.

The contract also includes a retirement incentive for all teachers who submit to the superintendent of schools no later than March 1 of their first year of eligibility to retire an irrevocable letter of resignation for purposes of retirement, effective the following June 30. In exchange, they will receive a one-time payment of $20,000 and a payment at a rate of 50 percent of their regular daily rate for their unused accumulated sick days.

***

For the first time in the history of the U.S. Open Golf Championship being held at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, the Shinnecock Indian Nation incorporated a formal land acknowledgement as part of the opening events at the 126th U.S. Open, which teed off yesterday with practice rounds for many of the 156 players who will compete for the trophy starting this coming Thursday.

Cailin Riley reports on 27east.com that the land acknowledgment was historic, as it was the first time it has happened in the history of the U.S. Open, which began in 1895 and was hosted at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in 1896 for the first of what is now six times.

The land acknowledgement is a way to formally recognize that this international major sporting event is being staged on the ancestral, traditional and unceded homelands of the Shinnecock people, who have stewarded the land and waters of what is now known as eastern Long Island since humans arrived here some 10,000 years ago.

Shinnecock Hills Golf Club President Brett Pickett spoke at a special gathering on Monday, recognizing the historic moment and its significance. “As we gather to celebrate excellence in sport, we recognize the enduring presence, resilience and sovereignty of the Shinnecock Indian Nation and honor their continued contributions to the stewardship of the land, waters and natural resources of this region,” he said. “We pay our respect to Shinnecock elders past and present and extend that respect to future generations who will carry forward their traditions, knowledge and responsibilities to the land.”

A welcome address was delivered by the nation’s Sunksqua Linda Franklin and Sachem Daniel Collins Sr., offering words of reflection, gratitude and recognition of the enduring relationship between the Shinnecock people and their ancestral homeland.

“As you participate in this championship, I invite you to take a moment to recognize the history and spirit of this place,” Sunksqua Franklin said as she welcomed participants. “We ask that you walk these grounds with respect — not only for the game and its traditions, but for the land itself and for the generations of people who have called it home.”

Following the welcome, the Shinnecock Young Blood Singers sang an honor song recognizing the ancestors whose sacrifices, resilience and stewardship ensured the survival of Shinnecock traditions, language and cultural practices through generations.

***

The first day of practice rounds at the 126th U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club gave professional golfers the first taste of what the course will have in store for them this week, and gave residents and commuters the first taste of what the major international sporting event, which is expected to draw more than 100,000 people over the next six days, is going to mean for those of us who live and work on the South Fork.

Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that traffic was bad yesterday — really bad. Whether the eastbound morning trade parade and afternoon westbound commute were quantifiably worse than it normally is during peak season is the realm of anecdotal assessment, but there was no denying that some of the disruption of the normal situation — as bad as that is — was adding to Monday’s traffic woes. As of 9:30 last night, the westbound lanes of County Road 39 in Southampton were still crawling…with much congestion on the adjacent backroads.

“This is unbelievable, bumper to bumper everywhere — is it always like this,” asked Melody Bunson, who lives in rural Maryland but was driving one of the USGA’s shuttles, also stuck in the westbound traffic on Monday evening. “It took us about 20 minutes to get back here. That’s not even a mile. What time these folks going to get home?”

Inside the gates, those competitors and spectators who turned out for what is typically the least crowded day of the week, were met with bright sunshine and a stiff wind that had many denizens of warmer climates donning pullovers or even sweaters to ward off a chill.

A dead-ringer Donald Trump impersonator turned a lot of heads on the course Monday morning — including professional golfer Daniel Berger, who offered a bemused “Good morning, Mr. President” after walking off the first hole green, while another competitor, Jackson Van Paris stopped for a photo.

Lots of young fans took advantage of the relaxed atmosphere on the first day to try to get autographs from their favorite players.

Some folks dropped in yesterday just to grab their 126th U.S. Open apparel and memorabilia for the week ahead, while the gargantuan merchandise tent was not as busy as it will be later in the week during championship competition on Thursday through Sunday.

Despite the loss of federal funding, WLIW-FM continues to bring you pertinent local and regional news each and every day. Make a donation or becoming a sustaining member today by clicking here or call 800-262-0717.

***

The U.S. Open Golf Tournament Championship Trophy made its debut on the temporary Shinnecock Hills train station platform on Friday, with LIRR President Robert Free hoisting the 131-year-old trophy.

The ceremonial stop spotlighted what officials say is the highly recommended transportation option for the upcoming tournament week which starts today with practice rounds Monday through Wednesday. Then the championship play Thursday through Sunday.

Angelina Livigni reports in NEWSDAY that the last time the U.S. Open Golf Tournament took place in New York was in 2020 at the Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck. The U.S. Open Trophy was last presented at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton in 2018.

“This is what every golf professional, every player on tour, this is what they want to win,” Eric Steimer, senior director of the U.S. Open Championships for the United States Golf Association, said during a news conference while holding the trophy. “Frankly, as we picked Shinnecock Hills as our golf club, one of the true cathedrals of the game, this is where they want to win.”

On days of the tournament, fans have the option to take the Long Island Rail Road, rideshare or drive. Personal parking spaces will not be an option at the course, but fans can pay to park at the Shinnecock reservation and take a shuttle provided by USGA over to the tournament. The USGA on its website calls the LIRR “the most sustainable, affordable and convenient transportation option.”

“We have experience working with the LIRR to help bring this to life,” Steimer said during a news conference. “The infrastructure in place is a massive undertaking. This is two-plus years of planning culminating right now.”

Getting to Shinnecock is an approximately three- to four-hour train ride from Penn Station, requiring multiple transfers. The Shinnecock station is not open year-round, with the station operating exclusively as a stop on the Montauk Branch for U.S. Open Golf Championships at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.

Hampton Jitney is operating dedicated luxury motorcoach shuttles for the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills

from Wednesday, June 17, through Sunday, June 21.

Service runs directly between points east...Montauk through Southampton...dropping off and departing at Admission Gate 2 at the Stony Brook Southampton campus.

***

Reducing the cost of bringing prefabricated homes to Long Island and elsewhere in the state.

Expanding telehealth calls for residents of assisted living communities.

Ending the requirement that businesses who employ female restaurant workers get state permission allowing them to work after midnight.

James T. Madore reports in NEWSDAY that those are among the first 50 regulations that New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has struck down as part of a new initiative to reduce red tape and bureaucracy for businesses and individuals that must interact with state government.

"We're making it easier to build housing and infrastructure, access healthcare and cut down on burdensome fees and paperwork — delivering a more efficient government for every New Yorker," Hochul said in announcing the changes today under her EXPRESS NY initiative.

Launched in February, the initiative comes as Hochul, a Democrat, seeks re-election in November to a second full term and faces criticism from Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman.

Government bureaucracy and red tape are a key challenge for small businesses. Ten percent said regulations were the single most important problem they face, based on a nationwide survey released last Friday by the advocacy group National Federation of Independent Business.

Hochul, who helped her late mother run a flower shop outside of Buffalo in the early 1990s, said the regulatory rollbacks announced today are the first in a series and would reduce state fees and compliance costs by "tens of millions of dollars" for more than 1.5 million people.

The changes announced today were recommended by 22 state agencies. Additional rollbacks will come from nearly 4,000 recommendations made by the public between February and April, according to Hochul.

"Every New Yorker can agree that bureaucratic obstacles stand in the way, wasting time and money," she said in a statement.

***

Early voting in the Democratic Party primary is underway in New York.

Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that on the east end, two candidates are competing for the Democratic party’s nomination in New York’s First Congressional District: Lukas Ventouras and Christopher Gallant. The winner of the primary contest will challenge incumbent Rep. Nick LaLota (R-Amityville) in the November general election.

Gallant, 37, is a National Guardsman, Black Hawk helicopter pilot, former FAA air traffic controller and volunteer firefighter from Amity Harbor. Born in Smithtown, Gallant joined the Army at 17, became an air traffic controller and deployed to Kuwait in 2012, he told RiverheadLOCAL last year. He later became an FAA air traffic controller, most recently guiding flights out of Kennedy Airport.

Ventouras, 25, is a law student from Northport and the son of Greek immigrants. He graduated from New York University and is a student at St. John’s University School of Law.

Also on the Democratic primary ballot this year is the contest for NYS comptroller, pitting incumbent Thomas DiNapoli and challengers Drew Warshaw and Raj Goyle.

The Democratic Party primary election date is June 23. There is no Republican Party primary.

Early voting in the primary election is as follows:

• Today, June 15, 10am - 6pm
• Tuesday, June 16, 7am - 3pm
• Wednesday, June 17, 7am - 3pm
• Thursday, June 18, 12 noon - 8pm
• Friday, June 19, 12 noon - 8pm
• Saturday, June 20, 10am - 6pm
• Sunday, June 21, 10am - 6pm

Registered Democrats may vote at any one of the early voting locations in Suffolk County, regardless of residency. See the full list of early voting locations here.

On primary election day and general Election Day registered voters must vote at their designated polling places.

Gasoline prices on Long Island and in the metropolitan area climbed 46.8% last month overall compared with a year ago, the third double-digit increase since March and the highest so far. James T. Madore reports in NEWSDAY that skyrocketing pump prices led to higher inflation overall in both the New York area and nationwide in May with the consumer price index rising at its quickest pace in three years. The index was released yesterday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The ongoing war in Iran, which has disrupted oil production and transportation for more than 100 days, is behind the high cost of gasoline, experts said. In the New York area, gasoline prices rose in May at their fastest rate in nearly four years.

However, they've moderated this month. The average price of a gallon of unleaded in our region was $4.25 yesterday, down from $4.41 on June 1, according to AAA. The price of gasoline on the south fork east of Southampton Village is currently closer to 4.50 or more per gallon.

Economists predicted pump prices would remain elevated as long as the Iran war rages — and consumers burdened by the higher cost of living would continue to alter their shopping habits as a result.

Gasoline was a driving force in the price index for the 25-county region that includes Long Island rising 5.1% last month compared with May 2025. That rate of growth is the fastest since February 2023.

“Over 5% starts to get people concerned because [increases in the index] should really be in the 2% to 3% range,” said Steven Kent, chief economist for the Long Island Association business group. “Getting to over 5% is difficult for people.”

Pump prices were up 40.5% nationwide year over year, or 6.3 percentage points lower than locally.

***

A Suffolk County judge yesterday issued an order in related lawsuits over U.S. Open Golf parking at Enterprise Park at Calverton (EPCAL).

The order bars tournament-related vehicles from parking on 400 David Court LLC’s property.

Shuttle buses may pass through the easement area, and concrete blocks obstructing bus movement may be moved.

The court said the order does not decide whether the planned use is permitted under the easement.

Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that a Calverton property owner has sued the Town of Riverhead, the Riverhead Community Development Agency and the United States Golf Association over use of part of its property for U.S. Open parking and shuttle operations at EPCAL, but a court order issued Wednesday appears to preserve the town’s planned parking operation while barring vehicles from parking on the company’s property.

Riverhead Town Attorney Erik Howard told Riverheadlocal last night that the parties appeared in Suffolk County Supreme Court and conferenced the matter. “At this time, there appears to be agreement resolving the immediate disputes relative to the parking of vehicles at the Town’s Calverton property,” Howard said. “I do not anticipate that parking for the US Open at Calverton Enterprise Park will be negatively impacted.”

The court order expressly states that it does not resolve whether the use of the easement contemplated by the license agreement, or by the order itself, is a permitted use under the easement. The underlying lawsuits remain pending.

The USGA’s proposal, attached to the town’s license agreement, estimated peak parking demand at about 3,750 vehicles on Friday and Saturday of championship week, with about 8,625 people using the Calverton parking and shuttle operation on those peak days. USGA officials said they expected to use about 130 to 145 coach buses on peak days to move spectators between Calverton and Shinnecock Hills.

***

In just 4 days the U.S. Open returns to Shinnecock Hills Golf Club for its 126th playing, and the fifth time it has been held in Southampton.

As reported on 27east.com, the annual tournament is the United States Golf Association’s premier showcase, of the 14 national championships it puts on, and its largest production by far. Each year’s championship takes four years to prepare for and organize. With more than 100,000 spectators, volunteers, vendors and media passing through the gates, the logistics require creating, and then dismantling, a small city in just a matter of months — at a cost of more than $80 million.

Tournament week begins this coming Monday with championship play Thursday, June 18 through Sunday, June 21st.

Opens at Shinnecock Hills are always in the national spotlight. Indeed, it is an international sporting event right here in our own hometown...for better or worse.

***

When James Abdul-Lateef Poulos started to study Islam in the mid-1980s, he had a hard time finding a mosque on Long Island, he said. There were only four.

Today, there are 40, underscoring the steady growth of the Muslim community in Nassau and Suffolk, he said. Now, several new ones are going up, including two that will be the largest on Long Island.

Bart Jones reports in NEWSDAY that groundbreaking is set for Sunday on a 34,000-square-foot mosque on William Floyd Parkway in Shirley that is being spearheaded in part by a new, younger generation of Muslims. It will be the second-largest in the region.

The largest, the Islamic Center of Melville, at 45,000 square feet, had a "soft opening" a year ago, leaders said. It should have its final touches done by the end of this year, followed by a grand opening.

In Suffolk County alone, new mosques also have been built recently or are nearing completion in Dix Hills, Wyandanch, Mount Sinai and Medford-Coram, Poulus said.

Poulus, who converted to Islam, became a founder of the Shirley mosque and an imam, or spiritual leader, there. Long Island is now home to at least 100,000 Muslims, community leaders said.

The Islamic Center of Shirley-Mastic mosque has grown from 40 families when it was founded in 2002 to about 400 today, said Poulos, who also is a chaplain with the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department. They come from neighboring communities as far as Ridge and Manorville, said Imam Mehdad Islam, another leader of the mosque.

The groundbreaking ceremony is expected to attract political local officials, including Brookhaven Town Supervisor Dan Panico.

The Muslim community is growing partly because many Muslims, like other immigrant groups before them, are moving out of New York City for the suburban life with more space and good schools, Imam said.

The project will end up costing about $6 million, some of it raised from Muslims in Shirley but the bulk coming from members of other mosques on Long Island, Islam said. He has visited many of them to make appeals during their Friday prayers services.

***

A defiant — and at times emotional — East Hampton Town Board trudged forward this week on buying a large vacant property on Wainscott Northwest Road for $4 million, which would be used to bolster the town’s fledgling housing landbank amid the ongoing housing crisis. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that with a unanimous vote, the East Hampton Town Board authorized town personnel to close on the deal, using Community Housing Fund revenue, at a work session on Tuesday.

“I will guarantee you: I will do everything moving forward to try to fix this problem as long as I'm here — and this is a potential sliver of a solution here to try to target and acquire property to try to make sure that this community survives well past me not being here anymore,” said Councilman David Lys.

Outside a simmering housing crisis, the backdrop to Lys’s impassioned remarks was stern opposition from neighbors and a courtroom battle over the funding source, which played out as the clock ticked on a 90-day, seller-imposed deadline to close, set to lapse on June 25.

The resolution came just days after Suffolk County Supreme Court Justice James F. Quinn cleared the way for East Hampton Town officials to move forward on the buy by coming down on the side of the town in the brief but intensive bout of litigation between the town and a neighbor of the Wainscott Northwest parcel.

Filed just a few weeks ago, the court case began after town officials made public, via resolution and subsequent public hearing, their hope to purchase the 13.5-acre vacant property in Wainscott, not far from Route 114, for use as a future affordable housing development.

But there was — and is — no plan in place as to the nature and scale of the affordable housing development, and a neighbor quickly filed suit to block the purchase, setting in motion the burst of legal wrangling between the Town of East Hampton and the neighbor, Elise McKenna.

Those in favor argued that landbanking with CHF money is made necessary by the aggressive nature of the East End real estate market and that vacant land is getting sparser and sparser around town as the pace of development continues unrelentingly.

***

The Bridgehampton Child Care & Recreational Center will honor a group of East End educators during its 2026 Center Honors event this coming Saturday, June 13, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon at the center on Bridgehampton-Sag Harbor Turnpike.

The event celebrates what organizers describe as the “unsung heroes” of the East End — individuals whose contributions often go unrecognized but have made a lasting impact on local communities. This year’s ceremony will specifically recognize educators of color whose work has shaped the lives of generations of students throughout the East End.

Honorees from the Bridgehampton School District include Grace Reynolds Victor, Helen Giles Smith, Aleta Parker, Jackie Poole, Daisy Bowe and Mandel Perodin. Poole, Bowe and Perodin will be honored in memoriam.

The Southampton School District honorees are Sharyn Sammy, Nature Richard, Bertha Richard, Tonya Hodges and Perri Nation, who will also be recognized in memoriam.

Nancy Stevens of the Sag Harbor School District will also be honored during the ceremony.

Organizers said the event will bring together educators’ families, colleagues and community members to celebrate their dedication, service and lasting influence on generations of East End students.

The Center Honors will take place at the Bridgehampton Child Care & Recreational Center, located at 551 Bridgehampton-Sag Harbor Turnpike in Bridgehampton. Admission is free, though registration is encouraged.

For more information, visit BHCCRC.org or contact the center at [email protected] or 631-537-0616.

***

The Greenport Yacht & Shipbuilding Company, the storied Carpenter Street property known by Greenporters as the Shipyard, may soon change hands, and its potential new owner is exploring whether Suffolk County’s new Working Waterfront Protection Plan will be able to help keep the property in use as a vital resource for Greenport’s maritime industries.

Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that Nick Voulgaris III, who is in contract to purchase the property from Stephen Clarke, received a favorable reception for his plans at the Suffolk County Working Waterfront Protection Committee’s meeting this week.

Members of the committee called the shipyard a poster child for the new program, which is designed to keep historically working waterfront properties from being sold off to developers looking to build high end waterfront projects — a rapid change that is happening all over Long Island.

The committee is charged with evaluating whether properties meet numerous criteria for working waterfront and recommending properties to the Suffolk County Legislature for the purchase of easements ensuring the property remains used in historic industries — including commercial fishing, boatbuilding, dockbuilding and aquaculture.

The county has allocated $2.6 million to the program this year, with a total commitment of $9.5 million between 2026 and 2028.

Tuesday’s session was only the second meeting of the Working Waterfront committee, which is still working out the details of the program.

The county would next need to appraise the value of the easement, a process that it has not yet gone through.

“It’s a property that we need to figure out a way to preserve,” said North Fork Suffolk County Legislator Greg Doroski, who is not on the committee but sat in on the meeting. “There’s definite urgency, but going through this for the first time, it’s important to get things right, not just for this applicant, but for future applicants. I think the idea of holding a special meeting is a good compromise position. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, once we get the answers.”

A string of recent service meltdowns at Penn Station raises new questions about whether the Manhattan transit hub is up to handling massive crowds heading to the NBA Finals and World Cup, transportation advocates say.

Alfonso A. Castillo reports in NEWSDAY that three major incidents in and around Penn Station in recent weeks — including two rail tunnel fires — snarled Long Island Rail Road service over several rush hours, all while the station operates at reduced capacity because of a repair project keeping one of the four East River tunnels out of service.

Officials with Amtrak, which owns and maintains Penn Station and the adjoining tunnels, have said the incidents were anomalies and not evidence of larger infrastructure issues at the station — the busiest rail terminal in the Western Hemisphere.

But transit advocates say the recent failures were made worse by Amtrak's approach to tunnel repairs and capacity restrictions at a station built to handle about 100,000 riders daily, and now moving about six times as many each day.

Offering some hope for a smoother customer experience in the future at the 115-year-old station, Amtrak earlier this week released new details of an $8 billion project, spearheaded by the Trump administration, to redevelop Penn Station.

Although the effort will not expand track capacity, project leader Andy Byford said some of the upgrades will streamline train service. The planned demolition of the Infosys Theater at Madison Square Garden, on top of Penn, will allow for the removal of several structural columns at track level that will give riders more breathing room on platforms.

"We’re not just going to limit ourselves to what looks nice at street level and on the concourse," Byford said. "We’re also going to totally modernize the platform area and fire, life safety issues and make sure that things like the switches ... are modernized."

Samuel Turvey, chairman of Rethink Penn Station NYC, a group pushing for upgrades at Penn, said, even with a limited ability to expand the station’s capacity, any redevelopment effort should look to widen narrow platforms — making it easier for customers to get on and off trains, even with the kind of demand during the NBA Finals and World Cup.

***

Last week, a bill sponsored by New York State Assemblyman Tommy John Schiavoni that would require healthcare providers to report instances of alpha-gal syndrome in Suffolk County unanimously passed in the state Assembly.

Hope Hamilton reports on 27east.com that according to the NYS Department of Health, illnesses that are classified as reportable diseases must be reported to the department by healthcare workers and the data must be made available to the general public through the DOH’s annual Communicable Disease reports. Other tick-related illnesses such as anaplasmosis, babesiosis, Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever are reportable diseases. Alpha-gal syndrome, however, is not.

Schiavoni’s legislation would place alpha-gal syndrome on this list.

Alpha-gal syndrome — an allergy to foods containing the alpha-gal sugar molecule, most commonly mammalian meat products such as beef, lamb and pork, and in severe cases dairy products — can be caused by a lone star tick bite. Because the human body does not produce alpha-gal, the saliva of a lone star tick that contains alpha-gal can trigger this allergy. It’s important to note, however, that not everyone who gets bitten by a lone star tick develops alpha-gal syndrome, according to the DOH.

“I made this legislation because of the growing prevalence of alpha-gal syndrome on Eastern Long Island,” Schiavoni told THE SAG HARBOR EXPRESS. “Of the reported instances on the federal websites, Suffolk County is leading the country in cases of alpha-gal syndrome.”

A spokesperson from the Suffolk County Department of Health Services said in a statement this week: “Although specifics on tick density are difficult to establish, the Suffolk County Department of Health Services is continuing to see a tick population on the East End and throughout Suffolk County. The species of ticks the department is seeing includes blacklegged ticks, lone star ticks, American dog ticks and Asian longhorned ticks. Residents are reminded of the importance of tick education and prevention of tick bites.”

***

For the first time in seven years, a band has pulled off a three-peat at the 2026 Battle of the Bands.

Dan Stark reports on 27east.com that five teen bands treated fans to a memorable night of music and showmanship at Ponquogue Beach in Hampton Bays on Friday night. Daydream won its third consecutive battle in the Southampton Town-sponsored competition for teen musicians. Daydream is the first band to accomplish the feat since Road Trip from 2017 through 2019.

A four-piece rock band, Daydream’s five-song set showcased a band operating as a well-oiled machine, with quick transitions between songs and selections that got the crowd pumped.

After the winning bands were announced, Daydream returned to the stage for an encore performance of “The Spirit of Radio” by Rush, capping off a night where every battling band shined.

***

Land set to be used as parking for the U.S. Open Golf Championship at Shinnecock Hills next week is at the center of a legal dispute between its owner and the Town of Riverhead, court documents show.

Tiffany Cusaac-Smith reports in NEWSDAY that earlier this year, the United States Golf Association signed an agreement with Riverhead Town to use Enterprise Park at Calverton’s runways, tie-down, and taxiway for the golf tournament for shuttles, security screening, and parking, court records show. The agreement included a 16-acre easement area owned by 400 David Court LLC, a Delaware-based company.

But in a lawsuit filed in the Suffolk County Supreme Court on Saturday, 400 David Court LLC said the decades-old easement agreement with the Community Development Agency stipulates that the disputed area should not be used for parking and its only legal use is as a taxiway and an “aircraft parking area."

The suit charges that the USGA has trespassed on and damaged the property. Staff affiliated with the golf association have repeatedly been denied access to the property, according to the town.

Riverhead town, seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to halt the firm's interference, says otherwise, noting that the company “does not have any legal rights to utilize the Easement Area in any meaningful way," court records show.

Moreover, the town contends that not having access to the easement area will lead to irreparable harm, causing people with disabilities and first responders to travel longer.

The company’s lawsuit claims that the town and the USGA, which oversees the tournament, entered into a contract allowing the easement area to be used during the tournament “to park approximately 18,900 vehicles and shuttle an estimate of 43,470 people to and from the Town of Southampton."

Yet the company said in the lawsuit that it received written notice from the town regarding the tournament's use of the site only in late May.

Erik C. Howard, Riverhead Town attorney, told Newsday that efforts were made to avoid escalation of the litigation and that his office will “pursue judicial intervention and injunctive relief against the owner of 400 David Court, LLC to enforce the Town's property rights.”

“The Town is committed to its partnership with USGA and their production of the U.S. Open," Howard said. “It is unfortunate that the owner of 400 David Court has pursued this misguided course of action."

***

The Riverhead Town Board has scheduled a public hearing on the proposed site plan for the new five-story hotel adjacent to the town’s Town Square project at a special meeting this evening at 6 p.m. in Riverhead Town Hall. The five-story “Peconic Hotel,” slated to be a part of the Hilton Tapestry Collection is currently proposed as a five-story, 69,738-square-foot building containing a 94-room hotel, retail spaces, a restaurant, café and nine parking stalls on the lowest level, according to the public hearing notice.

The project is being proposed by J. Petrocelli Contracting, named last year Riverhead Town’s Master Developer of the Town Square project.

Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that the hotel will be on property transferred last year from the town to J. Petrocelli as part of the Town Square deal. It was initially slated to include 76 hotel rooms rooms, 12 penthouse condos on the fifth floor, three retail shops and a restaurant facing onto the Town Square, and parking spaces for the condos under the building.

The condos have now been replaced with 14 hotel suites.

The hearing, scheduled for 6 o’clock this evening at Riverhead Town Hall, concerns the site plan and special permit applications filed by J. Petrocelli Riverhead Town Square LLC, the town’s designated master developer for the town square project. This evening's meeting was called solely for the public hearing.

***

Hampton Library in Bridgehampton invites you to join them this coming Saturday, June 13th at 4pm in the newly renovated Geri Bauer Gallery for an inspiring talk with award-winning aerial photographer Joanna Steidle. Through her breathtaking aerial imagery, Steidle captures the beauty and fragility of our coastal environments, blending artistic vision with environmental advocacy. She will share how her unique perspective from above reveals important conservation issues affecting the ocean and Long Island's shoreline, offering a fresh and compelling view of the landscapes we call home.

Joanna Steidle, a Southampton resident, was named International Aerial Photographer of the Year in 2025.

Saturday's presentation is free. It starts at 4 p.m. in The Hampton Library in Bridgehampton.

***

High childcare costs on Long Island are forcing many parents to reduce work hours or rely on family for childcare, thus making full-time employment financially unrealistic.

Childcare providers face financial challenges due to high operational costs, including labor, rent, and regulatory requirements, which consume most revenue, leaving little room for profit despite high fees.

Government efforts to expand childcare access through increased funding and subsidies have not fully addressed the economic challenges, as many families still find childcare unaffordable, impacting workforce participation, particularly among women.

Victor Ocasio reports in NEWSDAY that across Nassau and Suffolk counties, parents are confronting child care costs that can exceed a year of tuition at a state college, forcing some families to delay careers, reduce work hours or leave the workforce altogether.

The price of childcare is prohibitive for many Long Island parents with median prices for infant care at a daycare center totaling $21,000 annually, according to a 2024 New York State Office of Children and Family Services report.

Yet despite those high prices, child care operators say many centers operate on thin margins because labor, insurance, rent and regulatory requirements consume most of the revenue they bring in.

The average annual price of childcare in New York was higher than every other state except Massachusetts between 2018 and 2023, and grew 18% during that period from $12,422 to $14,621 per child, according to U.S. Labor Department data.

Prices for infant care are about 55.7% higher at a daycare center in New York than the national average, according to Child Care Aware of America.

The shortage has compounded the problem. A 2025 state comptroller report found 60% of census tracts in New York were “child care deserts” in 2023, including 23 on Long Island with no child care at all.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security plans to flood New York City with more ICE agents since Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed legislation that will stymie the department’s efforts, the White House border czar said yesterday.

Hochul told Newsday that the move would be "wildly disruptive" to the nation's economic capital and that "Americans have had enough with the overreach of ICE."

On Long Island, immigration advocates said they feared a stepped-up U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement campaign in the city could spill over to Nassau and Suffolk counties, and they expect any surge to be met with resistance.

Speaking on Fox News, Tom Homan said he will fulfill a “promise" he made to Hochul that if the legislation passed, he would send more agents to the city. “I made her a promise," Homan said on “Fox and Friends." “You’re gonna see more ICE agents [than] you’ve ever seen in New York City. And it's coming." “I just reviewed an operational plan," he added. “I'm not gonna tell you exactly when it's gonna happen, but it's coming. I'm keeping my promise. We're gonna send more ICE agents to New York because you took away the efficiencies of safe arrests in county jails."

He has previously said he will “flood the zone" in New York City.

Bart Jones reports in NEWSDAY that Hochul in late May signed legislation that bars ICE agents from wearing masks and keeps immigration agents out of sensitive locations such as churches and schools unless they have a warrant.

The legislation also bars local governments from entering into 287(g) agreements that allow them to deputize local police as ICE agents and allows ICE to use local jails to hold detained migrants.

On Monday, Hochul said President Donald Trump had promised her he will not send a surge of ICE agents into areas unless local officials ask for it.

"I'm not asking now - that'll never happen, because they saw what happened to Minneapolis...I would think that the president, the former New Yorker, would understand, we want to all keep the city safe. It is the economic engine of the country, so that'll be wildly disruptive" if he sends a surge of ICE agents, Hochul said.

Minerva Perez, executive director of Organización Latino Americana {OLA} an East End immigration advocacy group, said yesterday she fears an uptick in ICE agents in New York City will spread to Long Island.

“We already know there are outposts on Long Island. We already know that there are processing centers on Long Island," Perez said, adding that any surge in agents is likely "going to spill over to Long Island."

Hochul said New York will help arrest real criminals but not immigrants without criminal records. "New York State is not a sanctuary state for criminals," she said. "In New York, our local police need to be focused on local crimes and not filling up our jails with people who ICE has taken off our streets, out of our schools, out of our pizzerias, out of our homes, and I'm not going to be part of that," she said. "We're not going to be helping with civil immigration enforcement."

***

The Riverhead Town Board will hold a special meeting tomorrow evening for a public hearing on the proposed Peconic River Hotel, a five-story, 94-room hotel planned for East Main Street in Riverhead as part of the downtown town square project.

Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the hearing, scheduled for Wednesday June 10 at 6 p.m. in Town Hall, concerns the site plan and special permit applications filed by J. Petrocelli Riverhead Town Square LLC, the town’s designated master developer for the town square project. The meeting was called solely for the hearing.

The purpose of the hearing is to allow the Riverhead Town Board to review the hotel site plan and special permit application, hear from the applicant, receive comments from town staff and outside agencies, and take public comment before deciding whether to approve, deny or modify the applications.

The hotel is proposed for 117-127 E. Main St., on the south side of Main Street in Riverhead next to the planned town square and the East End Arts campus. The property is in the Downtown Center 1: Main Street zoning district, where hotels are allowed by special permit from the Riverhead Town Board.

***

The Suffolk County Police Department will hold a vehicle auction this coming Saturday, June 13, at its impound facility in Westhampton.

The auction, hosted by the department’s Impound Section, will begin at 9 a.m. at 100 Old Country Road.

Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that approximately 90 lots will be auctioned, including sedans and SUVs, according to police. All vehicles will have a minimum bid of $500 and will be sold as-is.

Vehicles may be previewed Thursday, June 11, and Friday, June 12, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the impound yard in Westhampton. Vehicles will also be available for preview for one hour before the auction begins Saturday.

Vehicle documents for the auction can also be viewed at the Suffolk County Police website and conditions are available at suffolkpd.org under “Impound Section” and “Vehicle Auctions.”

***

As Jor’Dynn Duncan racked up 40 absences in the final six months of last school term, Bayport-Blue Point school district officials heard several excuses.

The little girl was sick. A family member had died. She was on a family vacation to Disney World. All those reasons turned out to be false, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.

Payton Guion reports in NEWSDAY that in May 2025 alone, Jor’Dynn missed nearly the entire month of school, prosecutors said. Seven months later, she was dead at age 7. Her guardian, Emily Kelly, now stands accused of torturing and killing her, with Kelly’s mother and daughter also facing charges.

The case exposes a gap in the State of New York’s approach to chronic absenteeism: Schools must track attendance and report suspected educational neglect, but there is no automatic requirement to notify child welfare agencies when a young child misses a specific number of days. That leaves districts with broad discretion, even in extreme cases.

The lack of formal reporting requirements is part of a larger, statewide effort to keep kids in homes and out of the child welfare system, advocates and state officials said. But some education officials and lawmakers have expressed concerns that the lack of coordination between schools and child welfare agencies means some children may be missed by the systems meant to protect them.

"Especially in this case, looking at how many days this child missed school, it’s an indication that something was going on," said Suffolk Legis. Greg Doroski (D-Mattituck), who sits on the legislature’s Public Safety Committee. "And I think it should be, going forward, a clear case where there should be some more formal guidelines."

The state’s vague guidance — and preference for school district autonomy — has led to a patchwork of policies across the state, according to Sen. James Skoufis (D-Cornwall), who introduced legislation regarding student attendance this past session.

Currently, Skoufis said, when it comes to students who miss days upon days of class, school policies around New York are "all over the map."

Newsday reported last month that 17.3% of public school students on Long Island were chronically absent in the 2024-25 school year, meaning they missed 18 or more school days.

That’s down from recent years but well above the pre-pandemic level of 11.4% in 2018-19.

In the Bayport-Blue Point district, where Jor’Dynn Duncan attended school, 14.3% of students were chronically absent in the 2024-25 school year, up from 13.6% the previous year.

***

As state and local officials scramble to understand and limit the impact of a toxic plume discovered near a utility battery-storage plant in East Hampton, new questions are being raised about the state’s oversight of the plant following a 2023 thermal-runaway fire that sent millions of gallons of smoke-fouled water into the aquifer. Mark Harrington reports in NEWSDAY that at issue as governments rush to test groundwater now is why the state did not order groundwater tests directly after the fire, despite on-site reports from a contractor of large amounts of water running off-site.

Gerard Turza Jr., fire and EMS administrator at East Hampton Village, who was at the fire scene, said his team raised questions about firewater runoff and air-quality tests during plant visits. He said plant officials haven’t provided him requested results of air-monitoring studies and "absolutely" should have conducted groundwater studies in the 2023 investigation. Only soil samples and plant swipes were taken, Newsday has reported, citing a 2023 state report.

Knowing the nature of toxins early could have resulted in an earlier mitigation plan, said Turza, who is also chairman of the Suffolk County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services Commission.

"They weren’t very forthcoming with information," Turza said of plant developer NextEra, which owns the $55 million plant with National Grid. "Every time I asked a question they weren’t able to provide the answer. That’s alarming in and of itself."

In an email to Newsday Friday night, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation spokeswoman Cecilia Walsh noted that DEC spill responders had been “prohibited by the Fire Marshall” from going on-site at the fire until “days later,” after an internal sprinkler system had ceased and the fire was “determined to be fully extinguished.” DEC was told that runoff from the sprinkler water had migrated from the building “to an adjacent dirt road” on the southwest side of the building.

Walsh wrote that DEC was told that since no PFAS-containing firefighting foam was used to fight the fire, and that no other information provided to the DEC “indicated the presence of PFAS or any PFAS-related-discharges to soil or groundwater.” As a result, she wrote, “DEC did not require groundwater sampling.”

On June 2, following revelations in Newsday about a federal lawsuit filed by the Suffolk County Water Authority alleging toxin-laced water from the site impacted four drinking water wells in Bridgehampton, local officials called on state and local officials for help. Two of the wells have been shut down and two others put on restricted service because of the PFAS-related toxins, the authority charged, saying it will cost millions to resolve the problem.

A 2019 report by the Long Island Commission for Aquifer Protection shows East Hampton is the largest Suffolk town using private wells, with just over 7,400 at the time. Around 30 properties immediately surrounding the site appear to be on private wells, said a spokesman for Suffolk County, Peter Guaraldi.

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The East Hampton Ladies’ Village Improvement Society will bring back its annual fair this coming Saturday, June 13 with an expanded slate of activities, new community partnerships and programming tied to the nation’s upcoming 250th anniversary, according to LVIS organizers.

The fair, held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the historic Gardiner Brown House on Main Street in East Hampton, is expected to exemplify more than a century of tradition since the first LVIS fair in 1896. This year’s event will feature more than 30 free activities for children and families, including a carousel, pony rides, petting zoo, live entertainment, crafts, face painting and a children’s playland.

Ladies Village Improvement Society Executive Director Rachel Cooper said the 2026 fair places a renewed emphasis on community collaboration and historic themes while maintaining longstanding traditions.

Cooper said planning also included revisiting earlier versions of the fair, with an effort to revive historic booths and older traditions alongside new programming. She said the event reflects a “reset” following scaled-back pandemic-era fairs and a renewed push to expand offerings for families.

The fair will again be presented as a free, community-focused event supported by volunteers.

The Ladies' Village Improvement Society (LVIS) of East Hampton, N.Y. was founded in

1895 by 21 local housewives to help preserve and beautify the Village of East Hampton.

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Suffolk County has apprehended 18 individuals alleged to have stolen items worth a collective $110,000 from local retailers through repeated shoplifting, county officials announced yesterday.

Victor Ocasio reports in NEWSDAY that the arrests stem from the county’s Retail Protection Partnership, which brings together police, retailers and U.S. Marshals to coordinate responses to repeat shoplifting offenders, Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced at a news conference inside The Home Depot off Crooked Hill Road in Commack Monday.

“We want to make sure that we’re working with our police and retailers to identity the professionals, the ones who are doing the most damage, affecting our communities and stores most profoundly," Tierney said.

The 18 defendants have been charged with felonies over the last six months, including grand larceny burglary, according to the D.A.'s office.

The partnership, launched in 2023, brings together retailers with local authorities so repeat offenders can be identified, Tierney said. From there, shoplifters’ individual thefts can be “aggregated," increasing the total value of their theft, thereby increasing charges to felony levels, which carry harsher penalties.

Tierney said the goal is not to send U.S. Marshals after the one-time thief who “steals a six-pack from 7-Eleven and doesn’t show up [to court]," but rather to go after “organized and sophisticated" criminals who proficiently steal from retailers with the intent to resell those goods on the secondary market.

Nicholas Guttman, regional asset protection manager for The Home Depot for the metropolitan area, said shoplifting has become a more prominent issue in recent years.

Surveillance video at the media event showed several instances of charged individuals walking out the door with flat-bed carts stacked with large tools and appliances.

“It’s just gotten more organized and so much more brazen," Guttman said. “No longer is it the days where they’re hiding somewhere and trying to put something down their pants. Now, it’s just walk out with a cart full of product."

The Home Depot, based in Atlanta, states that an organized retail crime is reported at one of its more than 2,300 stores every 5 minutes.

Retailers reported a 93% increase in the average number of shoplifting incidents in 2023 compared with 2019, according to a National Retail Federation report released in 2024.